Mental Health Center Provides Access after Denial
Mental Health Center Provides Access after Denial
Covered Entity: Mental Health Center
Issue: Access, Authorization
The complainant alleged that a mental health center (the "Center")
improperly provided her records to her auto insurance company and
refused to provide her with a copy of her medical records. The Center
provided OCR with a valid authorization, signed by the complainant,
permitting the release of information to the auto insurance company.
OCR also determined that the Center denied the complainant's request
for access because her therapists believed providing the records to her
would likely cause her substantial harm. The Center did not, however,
provide the complainant with the opportunity to have the denial
reviewed, as required by the Privacy Rule. Among other corrective
action taken to resolve this issue, the Center provided the complainant
with a copy of her records.
Must a covered entity inform individuals in advance of any fees that may be charged when the individuals request a copy of their PHI? This guidance remains in effect only to the extent that it is consistent with the court’s order in Ciox Health, LLC v. Azar, No. 18-cv-0040 (D.D.C. January 23, 2020), which may be found at https://ecf.dcd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2018cv0040-51. More information about the order is available at https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/court-order-right-of-access/index.html. Any provision within this guidance that has been vacated by the Ciox Health decision is rescinded. Yes. When an individual requests access to her PHI and the covered entity intends to charge the ...read more |
Private Practice Revises Policies and Procedures Addressing Activities Preparatory to Research Covered Entity: Private Practice Issue: Impermissible Disclosure-Research A private practice physician who was the principal investigator of a clinical research study disclosed a list of patients and diagnostic codes to a contract research organization to telephone patients for recruitment purposes. The disclosure was not consistent with documents approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB). The private practice maintained that the disclosure to the contract research organization was permissible as a review preparatory to research. Activities considered “preparatory to research” include: preparing a research protocol; developing a research hypothesis; ...read more |
Mental Health Center Provides Access and Revises Policies and Procedures Covered Entity: Mental Health Center Issue: Access, Restrictions The complainant alleged that a mental health center (the "Center") refused to provide her with a copy of her medical record, including psychotherapy notes. OCR’s investigation revealed that the Center provided the complainant with an opportunity to review her medical record, including the psychotherapy notes, with her therapist, but the Center did not provide her with a copy of her records. The Privacy Rule requires covered entities to provide individuals with access to their medical records; however, the Privacy Rule exempts ...read more |
No Business Associate Agreement? $31K Mistake The Center for Children’s Digestive Health (CCDH) has paid the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) $31,000 to settle potential violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Privacy Rule and agreed to implement a corrective action plan. CCDH is a small, for-profit health care provider with a pediatric subspecialty practice that operates its practice in seven clinic locations in Illinois. In August 2015, the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) initiated a compliance review of the Center for Children’s Digestive Health (CCDH) following an initiation ...read more |
|
December 2024
Su | Mo | Tu | We | Th | Fr | Sa |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 |
15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 |
22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 |
29 | 30 | 31 |
Blog Home
Newest Blog Entries
11/12/22 Modernizing Medicine Agrees to Pay $45 Million to Resolve Allegations of Accepting and Paying Illegal Kickbacks and Causing False Claims
11/12/22 Indian National Charged in $8 Million COVID-19 Relief Fraud Scheme
11/12/22 Former Hospital Employee Pleads Guilty To Criminal HIPPA Charges
11/12/22 Covered entities and those persons rendered accountable by general principles of corporate criminal liability may be prosecuted directly under 42 U.S.C. § 1320d-6
11/12/22 The Delaware Division of Developmental Disabilities Services Data Breach
11/12/22 OCR Settles Three Cases with Dental Practices for Patient Right of Access under HIPAA
11/12/22 HHS Issues Guidance on HIPAA and Audio-Only Telehealth
11/12/22 Five Former Methodist Hospital Employees Charged with HIPAA Violations
11/12/22 May a covered entity use or disclose protected health information for litigation?
11/12/22 When does the Privacy Rule allow covered entities to disclose protected health information to law enforcement officials?
11/12/22 Must a covered entity inform individuals in advance of any fees that may be charged when the individuals request a copy of their PHI?
Blog Archives
November 2022 (54)
Blog Labels
Covered Entity (40) BAA (3) Data Breach (1) Telehealth (1) HIPAA (2) HIPAA Enforcement (3) EHR Fraud (1) PPP Fraud (1) ePHI (2)
|