HIPAA Omnibus Update - Tracking Down the Details

The new omnibus update to the HIPAA regulations now in effect contains numerous changes based, for the most part, on The HITECH Act passed in 2009. Some of the most significant changes for medical offices have to do with changes to individual rights under HIPAA that require changes in policies and procedures and must be properly noted in your forms and notices. All HIPAA privacy policies and notices of privacy practices (NPP) must be updated to meet the new rules. This course will describe the schedule of implementation and scope of the changes.

Why Should You Attend:

This webinar will review the new requirements for the notice of privacy practices (NPPs) to include notice of fundraising activity and an opportunity to opt out, new requirements for individuals to provide authorization for the sale of PHI, new rights of access to electronic records, new rights to restrict certain disclosures, and rights of notice in the event of a breach.

The changes are numerous and many are subtle and require an in depth examination of your NPPs. To illustrate this, the course will also examine:

• New regulations and their effect on HIPAA policies
• New rights that must be added to your policies and NPPs
• Areas where current rights need to be modified
• Areas that no longer need notice
• Typical policy content
• Areas where changes might best be made
• Information that needs to be added or removed to meet requirements most efficiently and economically
• Sample policies, additional resources and templates
• The instructor will outline the work that must be done for updating HIPAA compliance for medical offices with a to-do list of activities that must be undertaken.

Areas Covered in the Webinar:

• All HIPAA privacy policies and NPPs must be updated to meet the new rules that became enforceable in September 2013. The schedule of implementation and scope of the changes will be described.
• Breach notification policies must be updated to meet the new requirements, and privacy notices will need to include mention of the right to be notified in the event of a breach of the privacy or security of their protected health information (PHI).
• Individuals have a new right to request electronic copies of information held electronically that must be reflected in policy and the NPP.
• Individuals have new rights to restrict disclosure of encounter information to an insurer if it is paid fully out of the pocket by the individual. Policies and the NPP must identify this right.
• Fundraising policies may need to be updated, and fundraising activity must be described in the NPP, with an opportunity to opt-out.
• Healthcare operations involving potential marketing activity must be re-evaluated in light of the new rules and policies and notices must be updated.
• How you should update your policies and your NPP - how do you document them, to whom does the new NPP go, and how?

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.). This includes:

• Compliance officers and directors
• CEOs
• CFOs
• Privacy officers
• Information systems managers
• HIPAA officers
• Chief information officers
• Health information managers
• Healthcare counsel/lawyers
• Office managers
• Contract managers