Overview:
Over many years, the heads of the US DHHS have indicated that patient access of information is a key priority in order to improve the health of the nation.
Patient rights under HIPAA have been expanded to include new rights of access, and guidance has been issued on access of records. The emphasis on rules having to do with patient access of records need to be reflected in every health care-related organization's policies and procedures. The guidance provides clear and detailed information on how to provide access, what can be charged for in fees, and what the individual's rights are when it comes to access of information. The rallying cry for easy patient access and transfer of information increases daily and is no longer escapable.
HIPAA also provides for individual rights to receive electronic copies of records held electronically, and patients have rights under HIPAA and the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) to directly access test results from the laboratories creating the data.
All HIPAA-covered entities need to review their HIPAA compliance, policies, and procedures to see if they are prepared to be in full compliance and meet the requirements of the rules. Compliance is required and violations for willful neglect of the rules begin at more than $10,000.
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 information blocking regulations and proposed changes to the HIPAA 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, with more than a dozen enforcement settlements announced in recent months.
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.
Why you should 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.
In addition, HHS has proposed changes to the HIPAA rules to improve the response of healthcare providers to requests to access or transfer PHI, especially electronic information. These rules may go into effect in 2021.
Areas Covered in the Session:
Over many years, the heads of the US DHHS have indicated that patient access of information is a key priority in order to improve the health of the nation.
Patient rights under HIPAA have been expanded to include new rights of access, and guidance has been issued on access of records. The emphasis on rules having to do with patient access of records need to be reflected in every health care-related organization's policies and procedures. The guidance provides clear and detailed information on how to provide access, what can be charged for in fees, and what the individual's rights are when it comes to access of information. The rallying cry for easy patient access and transfer of information increases daily and is no longer escapable.
HIPAA also provides for individual rights to receive electronic copies of records held electronically, and patients have rights under HIPAA and the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) to directly access test results from the laboratories creating the data.
All HIPAA-covered entities need to review their HIPAA compliance, policies, and procedures to see if they are prepared to be in full compliance and meet the requirements of the rules. Compliance is required and violations for willful neglect of the rules begin at more than $10,000.
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 information blocking regulations and proposed changes to the HIPAA 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, with more than a dozen enforcement settlements announced in recent months.
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.
Why you should 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.
In addition, HHS has proposed changes to the HIPAA rules to improve the response of healthcare providers to requests to access or transfer PHI, especially electronic information. These rules may go into effect in 2021.
Areas Covered in the Session:
- Learn about the latest enforcement action under HIPAA, regarding patient access of records
- 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
- Find out how the HIPAA rules are proposed to be changed to improve patient access of PHI
- 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
- Find out about HIPAA audit and enforcement activities and what you need to do to survive a HIPAA audit or enforcement action
Speaker
Jim Sheldon-Dean is the founder and director of compliance services at Lewis Creek Systems, LLC, a Vermont-based consulting firm founded in 1982, providing information privacy and security regulatory compliance services to a wide variety of health care entities.Sheldon-Dean serves on the HIMSS Information Systems Security Workgroup, has co-chaired the Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange Privacy and Security Workgroup, and is a recipient of the WEDI 2011 Award of Merit. He is a frequent speaker regarding HIPAA and information privacy and security compliance issues at seminars and conferences, including speaking engagements at numerous regional and national healthcare association conferences and conventions and the annual NIST/OCR HIPAA Security Conference in Washington, D.C.
Who Should Attend
- CEO
- HIPAA Privacy Officers
- HIPAA Security Officers
- Information Security Officers
- Risk Managers
- Compliance Officers
- Privacy Officers
- Health Information Managers
- Information Technology Managers
- Information Systems Managers
- Medical Office Managers
- Chief Financial Officers
- Systems Managers
- Chief Information Officer
- Healthcare Counsel/lawyer
- Operations Directors
