Health Plan Corrects Computer Flaw that Caused Mailing of EOBs to Wrong Persons

Health Plan Corrects Computer Flaw that Caused Mailing of EOBs to Wrong Persons
Covered Entity: Health Plans
Issue: Safeguards

A national health maintenance organization sent explanation of benefits (EOB) by mail to a complainant's unauthorized family member. OCR's investigation determined that a flaw in the health plan's computer system put the protected health information of approximately 2,000 families at risk of disclosure in violation of the Rule. Among the corrective actions required to resolve this case, OCR required the insurer to correct the flaw in its computer system, review all transactions for a six month period and correct all corrupted patient information.



Wednesday, November 9, 2022 A federal grand jury in Newark, New Jersey, returned an indictment today charging an Indian national for fraudulently obtaining millions of dollars in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. According to court documents, Abhishek Krishnan, 40, previously resided in Wake County, North Carolina, before returning to his home country of India. After returning to India, Krishnan allegedly submitted numerous fraudulent PPP loan applications to federally insured banks, including on behalf of purported companies that were not registered business entities. ...read more



Can a covered entity use existing aspects of the HIPAA Privacy Rule to give individuals the right to decide whether sensitive information about them may be disclosed to or through a health information organization (HIO)? Yes. To the extent a covered entity is using a process either to obtain consent or act on an individual’s right to request restrictions under the Privacy Rule as a method for effectuating individual choice, policies can be developed for obtaining consent or honoring restrictions on a granular level, based on the type of information involved. For example, specific consent and restriction policies could ...read more



Private Practice Revises Process to Provide Access to Records Covered Entity: Private Practices Issue: Access A private practice failed to honor an individual's request for a complete copy of her minor son's medical record. OCR's investigation determined that the private practice had relied on state regulations that permit a covered entity to provide a summary of the record. OCR provided technical assistance to the covered entity, explaining that the Privacy Rule permits a covered entity to provide a summary of patient records rather than the full record only if the requesting individual agrees in advance to such a summary ...read more



Entity Rescinds Improper Charges for Medical Record Copies to Reflect Reasonable, Cost-Based Fees Covered Entity: Private Practice Issue: Access A patient alleged that a covered entity failed to provide him access to his medical records.  After OCR notified the entity of the allegation, the entity released the complainant’s medical records but also billed him $100.00 for a “records review fee” as well as an administrative fee.  The Privacy Rule permits the imposition of a reasonable cost-based fee that includes only the cost of copying and postage and preparing an explanation or summary if agreed to by the individual.  To ...read more

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