Patient Access of Medical Records under HIPAA - New HHS Guidance, New Focus for HIPAA Audits

Why Should You Attend:

Individual access of medical records is the focal point for eliminating data blocking today, because there are rules in place under HIPAA today that, if followed properly, would alleviate many of the information blocking issues that have been identified. The HIPAA enforcement action for not providing prompt access to records as required shows that HHS is serious about information blocking, and is using HIPAA to advance goals for better patient access of medical records.

The head of US DHHS has indicated that providing patient access to Protected Health Information is a key priority for improving the nation’s health and guidance from HHS provides detailed information on how best to provide information to patients within the rules. Covered entities, and particularly those that use electronic health records (EHRs), need to address the access and disclosure guidance. The guidance will be explained, so that access can be provided according to the rules and penalties can be avoided. Issues on provision and denial of access, as well as fees and other topics, will be discussed.

HHS has issued guidance on issues relating to access of mental health records and the records of minors, clarifying what information may be provided or not, depending on the information and other circumstances. The guidance also includes information on dealing with law enforcement requests for information on alleged violators of the law. This guidance will be reviewed, as well as the relationship to rules for handling information relating to substance use disorders under 42 CFR Part 2.

The new regulations will be reviewed and their effects on usual practices will be discussed, as will what policies need to be changed and how. We will show what policies and evidence you may need to produce if your compliance is reviewed by the HHS Office of Civil Rights, which has already indicated that compliance with the rules on patient access of records is a significant problem.

The enforcement rules include a four-tier violation schedule with increased fines, and mandatory fines for willful neglect of compliance that start at over $10,000 even if the problem is corrected within 30 days of discovery. Violations that are not promptly corrected carry mandatory fines that can reach into millions of dollars for any particular violation. And any reports of willful neglect are required to be investigated under the law. Even violations for a reasonable cause or with reasonable diligence taken are subject to penalty. We will discuss what is necessary to avoid penalties and make sound compliance decisions.

This Webinar will help health information professionals understand what they have to do, and when, and what to keep in mind as they move forward, in order to be in compliance with the regulations. It will provide a comprehensive look at the emphasis on the rules on access and prepare attendees for the process of incorporating any necessary changes into how they do business in their facilities.

Areas Covered in the Webinar:

• Learn about the latest enforcement action under HIPAA, regarding patient access of records.
• Learn about the access rights under HIPAA and CLIA regulations.
• Learn about the extensive guidance from the HHS Office of Civil Rights on access of PHI.
• Learn about the guidance from HHS regarding access of mental health information and minors' information.
• Find out what the regulations call for and what processes you must have in place for the proper approval and denial of access as appropriate.
• Learn about the required process for the review of certain denials of access.
• Learn how e-mail and texting should be handled, what can go wrong, and what can result when it does.
• Find out about HIPAA requirements for access and patient preferences, as well as the requirements to protect PHI.
• Learn about the training and education that must take place to ensure your staff handles access requests properly.
• Learn about HIPAA audit and enforcement activities and what you need to do to survive a HIPAA audit or enforcement action.

Who Will Benefit:

This webinar will provide valuable assistance to all personnel in medical offices, practice groups, hospitals, academic medical centers, insurers, business associates (shredding, data storage, systems vendors, billing services, etc). Employees who will benefit include:

• Compliance director
• CEO
• CFO
• Privacy Officer
• Security Officer
• Information Systems Manager
• HIPAA Officer
• Chief Information Officer
• Health Information Manager
• Healthcare Counsel/Lawyer
• Office Manager
• Contracts Manager