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sandy ingram

Health care providers anticipate new audit program - 0 views

www.finance-commerce.com/...allenges-as-scrutiny-increases

Health Care Audit

shared by sandy ingram on 05 Jan 09 - Cached
  • New audit program
  • Another development affecting hospitals will be the nationwide implementation of the Medicare Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) Audit program, Jesson noted. After testing the program in three states over the past three years, RAC auditors will begin auditing hospitals in Minnesota and other states for Medicare or Medicare fraud.
  • The federal government recently offered additional incentives to states that adopt laws that parallel the False Claims Act.
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  • Data privacy is another hot-button issue for health care consumers, providers and regulators
  • a Minneapolis attorney, expects to see stepped up reinforcement of so-called “red flag rules” under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act to prevent identity theft from health care providers and their patients.
  • health care organizations need to address three primary areas
  • making sure they have ID-theft prevention programs in place;
  • requirements relating to credit reports;
  • requirements related to the use of debit cards, credit cards and “smart” cards.
  • expects to see greater enforcement and “stiffening” of Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement:
  • As the current economic downturn continues, DeLoss also foresees another trend which should keep health law attorneys occupied in the coming year: more consolidation among medical practices.
  • sandy ingram on 05 Jan 09
     
    Another development affecting hospitals will be the nationwide implementation of the Medicare Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) Audit program, Jesson noted. After testing the program in three states over the past three years, RAC auditors will begin auditing hospitals in Minnesota and other states for Medicare or Medicare fraud.
sandy ingram

Amended SB1386 - Health care data security breach explained - 0 views

www.scmagazineus.com/...120069

hipppa SB1386 health training breaches

shared by sandy ingram on 01 Nov 08 - Cached
  • Health care data security breaches in the U.S.
  • New laws and regulations regarding data security breaches and disclosure laws affect the way in which health care organizations do business
  • Notifications can be delayed if law enforcement determines it could hinder a criminal investigation
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  • he disclosure shall be made in the most expedient time possible and without unreasonable delay, consistent with the legitimate needs of law enforcement, as provided in subdivision (c), or any measures necessary to determine the scope of the breach and restore the reasonable integrity of the data system.
  • Any agency that maintains computerized data that includes personal information that the agency does not own shall notify the owner or licensee of the information of any breach of the security of the data immediately following discovery, if the personal information was, or is reasonably believed to have been, acquired by an unauthorized person.
  • They need to implement proper security measures, like encryption,” Booz says. In addition, the law will require a new level of investment in training for customer service, sales, and other externally facing operations.
  • Individuals affected by data breaches that meet the personal information definition and notification requirements must be notified by using one of three methods: written notice, electronic notice with customer's consent, or substitute notice
  • A new California law requiring that customers be notified of a breach involving their medical information is likely to influence legislation in other states.
  • The new law requires all state agencies and companies that conduct business in California to notify residents when a breach of their medical information occurs.
  • The purpose of this rule is to secure personally identifiable information (PII) as it travels through the healthcare system. Healthcare organizations, including providers, payers, and clearinghouses, must comply with the Privacy Rule.
  • Between 2000 and 2007, nearly half of all health care security incidents that occurred in the U.S. were associated with hospitals.
  • Between 2000 and 2007, 40 percent of publicly known security incidents at health care organizations are classified as data breaches
  • Although data breaches (hackers, malicious employees, social engineering, etc.) only constitute 40 percent of incidents, they account for 57 percent of all records compromised, nearly two and a half times the next closest category.
  • This again speaks to the need for strong policies and procedures. If organizations did not allow sensitive data to leave their facility without being encrypted (for electronic data) or disposed of properly (for physical data), it could eliminate nearly a quarter of the incidents they would face.
  • sandy ingram on 01 Nov 08
     
    Notifications can be delayed if law enforcement determines it could hinder a criminal investigation
  • sandy ingram on 01 Nov 08
     
    A new California law requiring that customers be notified of a breach involving their medical information is likely to influence legislation in other states.
sandy ingram

FTC Announces Expanded Business Education Campaign on 'Red Flags' Rule - 0 views

www.ftc.gov/...redflag.shtm

Red Flags Rule FTC Privacy Security Enforcement

shared by sandy ingram on 30 Jul 09 - Cached
  • The Red Flags Rule is an anti-fraud regulation, requiring “creditors” and “financial institutions” with covered accounts to implement programs to identify, detect, and respond to the warning signs, or “red flags,” that could indicate identity theft. The financial regulatory agencies, including the FTC, developed the Rule, which was mandated by the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (FACTA).
  • The FTC’s Red Flags Web site, www.ftc.gov/redflagsrule, offers resources to help entities determine if they are covered and, if they are, how to comply with the Rule. It includes an online compliance template that enables companies to design their own Identity Theft Prevention Program through an easy-to-do form, as well as articles directed to specific businesses and industries, guidance manuals, and Frequently Asked Questions to help companies navigate the Rule.
  • sandy ingram on 30 Jul 09
     
    The three-month extension, coupled with this new guidance, should enable businesses to gain a better understanding of the Rule and any obligations that they may have under it. These steps are consistent with the House Appropriations Committee's recent request that the Commission defer enforcement in conjunction with additional efforts to minimize the burdens of the Rule on health care providers and small businesses with a low risk of identity theft problems. Today's announcement that the Commission will delay enforcement of the Rule until November 1, 2009, does not affect other federal agencies' enforcement of the original November 1, 2008, compliance deadline for institutions subject to their oversight.
sandy ingram

Smaller companies challenged to comply with Massachusetts' data privacy rules - Mass Hi... - 0 views

www.masshightech.com/...usetts-data-privacy-rules.html

compliance Privacy Security Massachusetts proofpoint

shared by sandy ingram on 10 Nov 10 - No Cached
  • The regulations, which went into force in March, are intended to protect a consumer’s personal information from identity theft and other privacy breaches and to spell out steps that businesses must take to ensure data is secured. Some large companies — particularly those in the finance and health care industries that are already subject to data security laws like the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) — had privacy measures in place, which helped get them ready for Massachusetts’ regulations. However, for many smaller and midsize companies that have not been subject to data security laws before, complying with the rules is a longer and often more painful process.
  • some businesses that are complying with privacy regulations for the first time and have limited in-house technology expertise “are running around with their hair on fire, trying to figure out what to do first,”
  • “We’ve seen a substantial uptick in activity in clients seeking guidance in how to comply,” said Carlos Perez-Albuerne, a partner at Choate Hall & Stewart LLP. “There’s a whole swath of businesses that never had to deal with anything like this before.”
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  • Under the regulations, organizations — no matter where they are based — that store personal information about Massachusetts residents have to write security policies detailing how the data will be protected, encrypt the data when it is stored on laptops or other portable devices or transmitted over public networks, and monitor their systems for breaches.
  • Believed to be among the most stringent data privacy regulations in the U.S., the rules have lawmakers and businesses taking note. The regulations are now driving computer security policy agendas across the country, said Mark Schreiber, a partner at Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge who chairs the firm’s privacy and data protection group. “The impact is much broader than we ever imagined. Who would have thought it would have catalyzed so much activity?” he said. “This will be with us for decades or longer.”
  • Since March, Cutugno Court Reporting and Sten-Tel Inc., a Springfield-based firm that provides document management and transcription systems, has spent “easily into the six-figure realm” on technology and consulting services to comply with the privacy regulations, said Blake Martin, the company’s CIO.
  • To date, state regulators have not yet taken any public enforcement actions against organizations that have failed to comply with the rules. The state attorney general’s office, which is charged with enforcing the regulations, and the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation, which developed the regulations, have been focusing on compliance efforts, reaching out to trade groups, bar associations and others to spread the word.
  • sandy ingram on 10 Nov 10
     
    "Eight months after the state's tough, new data privacy regulations went into effect, many businesses are still sorting through the rules and working to bring their firms into compliance. "
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