From the Desk of Matt Fisher – ICYMI

By Matt Fisher, Esq
Twitter: @matt_r_fisher
Host of Healthcare de Jure – #HCdeJure

Tune in weekdays at 2pm, 10pm or 6am ET as Matt serves up the hottest healthcare issues of the day, all from a legal point of view.  From public policies and Federal initiatives to privacy and security, join host Matt R. Fisher as he and his guests discuss a smorgasbord of topics, giving hospitals, physicians, vendors and patients a seat at the table. Matt’s virtual conversations can be listened to on demand or heard on air. So don’t miss a minute of what’s on the menu.

ICYMI, read the latest of Matt’s blogs. And don’t forget to join the conversation with Matt on #HCdeJure.

Monthly Data Breach Roundup: Hacking and Insiders in the Lead
The Breach Barometer published monthly through the joint effort of Protenus and Databreaches.net provides a fair amount of insight into data breach happenings. As noted in the report, the findings are based upon information obtained through searching records and releases, not just looking at reports filed with the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR). By expanding beyond just OCR, the findings provide more insight than would otherwise be readily available. Continue reading on HITECH Answers.

Fulfilling a Promise: Big, Juicy HIPAA Fine
The HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced a $3.5 million settlement with Fresenius Medical Care Holdings, Inc. and five of its subsidiaries (collectively, Fresenius) following the report and investigation of five separate breach notifications. Of note, the five breaches in total impacted 521 individuals with no single breach crossing the 500 individual immediate notification threshold. In fact, the breaches were reported at the same time near the annual deadline for reporting breaches impacting less than 500 individuals. Continue reading on HITECH Answers.

How Much Should Record Access Cost?: Debating HIPAA Access Rule for Entities
How much should access to a medical record cost? It is a thorny and complicated question since access comes in many forms. For instance, is an individual requesting a copy of their record for personal use, or to send to another provider for continuity of care purposes, or are the records going to an attorney for potential litigation? Each of those scenarios often results in a different charge being imposed for a copy of the medical record. The evolving state of regulations and guidance concerning access or copy costs is now the subject of a lawsuit. Continue reading on HITECH Answers.

Listen in on one of Matt’s Healthcare de Jure episodes.