USA Today reports: “Medical-privacy law creates wide confusion.” The article points out the life-threatening chaos going on in the medical field over HIPAA privacy and quotes Richard Campanelli of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as making the following points about HIPAA misconceptions:
- HIPAA does not prevent doctors or hospitals from sharing information with other doctors or hospitals in order to treat their patients;
- HIPAA allows hospitals or doctors to share information with the patient’s spouse, family members, friends or anyone the patient identifies is involved in their care;
- HIPAA does not prevent hospitals from disclosing names to clergy or from keeping patient directories. It does not require patients to sign up to be included in the directory, but it does allow patients to “opt out” and not be listed; and
- HIPAA does not apply to most police or fire departments; they may release names and information about accident victims, homicides and other incidents. HIPAA does limit the information that emergency medics may disclose.
For those who do not know, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services provides a great deal of helpful information at this site and answers to frequently asked questions here. You can access Mr. Campanelli’s chat on “Medical Privacy” at USAToday.com here.
“Health care rules change will be cost“: MSNBC reports. The article reports that “[d]espite the 12-month delay implementing the standard transaction rules, only an estimated 50 percent of health care carriers and providers were fully prepared to handle the new transactions mandated” according to Lee Barrett, director of client services for PricewaterhouseCoopers of Hartford, Conn., and an adviser to the U.S. Department of Heath and Human Services for HIPAA policy. Other estimates showed only 20 to 25 percent of small to mid-sized health care providers were ready to submit HIPAA-compliant claims to insurance companies by Oct. 16.
For more information on HIPAA: HIPAA Advisory News and HIPAA Blog.