Private Practice Revises Process to Provide Access to Records
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 or explanation. Among other
corrective actions to resolve the specific issues in the case, OCR
required the covered entity to revise its policy. In addition, the
covered entity forwarded the complainant a complete copy of the medical
record.
| DOVER (Oct. 21, 2022) – The Delaware Division of Developmental Disabilities Services is announcing today that it is mailing letters to service recipients and legal guardians who were impacted by a recent data breach incident and is providing information to the public regarding the incident. On August 23, 2022, staff within the Division of Developmental Disabilities Services (DDDS) discovered that in the process of creating new user accounts in the division’s client database, DDDS staff inadvertently provided access to individual records of 7074 individuals. As a result of these actions, 159 new users had potential access to service recipients’ ...read more |
| Issued by: Office for Civil Rights (OCR) Do the HIPAA Rules allow a covered entity or business associate to use a CSP that stores ePHI on servers outside of the United States? Answer: Yes, provided the covered entity (or business associate) enters into a business associate agreement (BAA) with the CSP and otherwise complies with the applicable requirements of the HIPAA Rules. However, while the HIPAA Rules do not include requirements specific to protection of electronic protected health information (ePHI) processed or stored by a CSP or any other business associate outside of the United States, OCR notes that ...read more |
| HMO Revises Process to Obtain Valid Authorizations Covered Entity: Health Plans / HMOs Issue: Impermissible Uses and Disclosures; Authorizations A complaint alleged that an HMO impermissibly disclosed a member’s PHI, when it sent her entire medical record to a disability insurance company without her authorization. An OCR investigation indicated that the form the HMO relied on to make the disclosure was not a valid authorization under the Privacy Rule. Among other corrective actions to resolve the specific issues in the case, the HMO created a new HIPAA-compliant authorization form and implemented a new policy that directs staff to obtain patient signatures ...read more |
| Pharmacy Chain Institutes New Safeguards for PHI in Pseudoephedrine Log Books Covered Entity: Pharmacies Issue: Safeguards A grocery store based pharmacy chain maintained pseudoephedrine log books containing protected health information in a manner so that individual protected health information was visible to the public at the pharmacy counter. Initially, the pharmacy chain refused to acknowledge that the log books contained protected health information. OCR issued a written analysis and a demand for compliance. Among other corrective actions to resolve the specific issues in the case, OCR required that the pharmacy chain implement national policies and procedures to safeguard the ...read more |
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11/12/22 Covered entities and those persons rendered accountable by general principles of corporate criminal liability may be prosecuted directly under 42 U.S.C. § 1320d-6
11/12/22 The Delaware Division of Developmental Disabilities Services Data Breach
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11/12/22 May a covered entity use or disclose protected health information for litigation?
11/12/22 When does the Privacy Rule allow covered entities to disclose protected health information to law enforcement officials?
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