Understand what rights HIPAA gives patients to access their medical information and how you are expected to respond to this important legal right.
Since 2019, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has not only provided significant guidance for covered entities for providing patients with timely and complete access to all or a portion of their health information but also has brought 18 separate and very costly enforcement actions against health care providers and health plans who have failed to live up to HIPAA’s standards. This topic provides a timely, practical look at exactly what HHS expects a covered entity to do in recognizing and honoring patients’ requests to access their health information and will help you chart (or recalibrate) your course for compliance under HIPAA.
Learning Objectives
- You will be able to discuss what rights HIPAA gives patients to access all or a portion of their medical information and how covered entities are expected to respond to this important legal right.
- You will be able to identify helpful strategies for allowing patients to exercise their right to access all or a portion of their health information as well as pitfalls to avoid in structuring your compliance program.
- You will be able to recognize how important the HIPAA right of access features are to assure that patients can timely get access to all or a portion of their health records upon request.
- You will be able to review your medical records and other HIPAA compliance policies and procedures as they relate to recognizing, honoring and responding to patients’ requests to access their medical information.
Agenda
What Is HIPAA’s Right of Access and Why Is It so Important?
- What Rights do Patients Have to Access All or a Portion of Their Designated Record Set Under HIPAA?
- What Responsibilities Do Health Care Providers (and Health Plans) Have to Respond to Patients’ Requests for Rights of Access?
- When Can Access Be Denied?
Legal and Regulatory Actions to Protect Patients’ Right of Access
- HHS Interpretations Challenged in a Federal Court
- HHS Guidance on Understanding the Right of Access
The Impact of HHS’s Right of Access Initiative
- A Look at the Unique Fact Patterns in the Right of Access Enforcement Actions
- Focal Points: Unreasonable Barriers to Patients’ Right of Access, Improper Format of Response, Excessive Costs
Lessons Learned and Practical Guidance for Updating Your Right of Access Program
- Steps for Assuring Patients Can Readily Assert Their Right of Access
- Responding Properly to Patients’ Requests
- Trust but Verify - Auditing Your Right of Access Compliance Efforts
Speakers
Leslie Bender, CIPP/US, CCCO, CCCA, IFCCE,
BCA Financial Services- Chief strategy officer and general counsel for BCA Financial Services, Inc., a Miami, Florida headquartered revenue cycle management company
- An articulate corporate executive with more than 30 years of experience handling compliance, regulatory, transactional and legal matters for hospitals and financial services companies
- Recognized as a national expert on HIPAA and other information privacy and security laws, she was one of the first privacy officers internationally accredited as a Certified Information Privacy Professional
- In addition to being an attorney and government/regulatory relations specialist, she is an experienced mediator
- Frequent motivational speaker and compliance educator and has been honored for her contributions to the consumer financial and health care industries by several credit, collections, health care and banking associations as well as the U.S. Small Business Administration
- J.D. degree, University of Notre Dame; undergraduate degree, Northwestern University
Who Should Attend
This live webinar is designed for medical records directors, health information managers, compliance officers, billing managers, administrators, physicians, nurses, and other medical facility staff.
