Like individuals, businesses have resolutions/goals for 2010, perhaps even this new decade. As information risk, such as HIPAA or the occurrence of a data breach, continues threaten companies and put individuals’ personal identities, finances and medical information in jeopardy, addressing this issue in the coming years is a worthy resolution for any business. With this
New Hampshire Enacts Strict Data Breach Notification Law Affecting Health Care Providers and Business Associates
New Hampshire’s new breach notification law builds on the breach notification requirements under the HITECH Act by requiring health care providers and business associates to notify individuals of disclosures of their protected health information that are prohibited by New Hampshire law, even if such disclosures are permitted under HIPAA or other federal law. This new health information protection was enacted with other measures relating to privacy of electronic medical records and allowing individuals to opt out of sharing their names, addresses, and protected health care information with e-health data exchanges.
H.B. 619 becomes effective for data breaches occurring on and after January 1, 2010. Individuals may sue for violations of the notification requirement and, significantly, seek damages of not less than $1,000 per violation. The law also expressly requires business associates to cover the costs of notification if the use or disclosure triggering notification was made by the business associate.
Now, when New Hampshire health care providers and business associates experience a possible data breach, they will have to consider a number of laws to determine the appropriate response. These include H.B. 619, the state’s general breach notification statute, and the breach notification rules under the HITECH Act and implementing regulations. This is even more complex for health care providers and business associates operating in multiple states as at least five other states (Arkansas, California, Delaware, Missouri, Texas) and Puerto Rico require notification in the event some form of medical information is breached.
Continue Reading New Hampshire Enacts Strict Data Breach Notification Law Affecting Health Care Providers and Business Associates
Is Shredding Enough?
Continuing our thoughts on how disclosures of private or confidential information may adversely impact the institution and the persons affected by such disclosure, we now focus on something near and dear to lawyers’ hearts: paper shredding.
Many businesses regularly shred documents they no longer need to protect them from disclosure. While this may secure the information contained
Electronic Health Records: The Work to Build a Health Information Technology Infrastructure Begins
In a key step toward developing a proposed U.S. health information technology (HIT) infrastructure, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has announced that Iowa’s Medicaid program is the first to receive federal matching funds for planning activities necessary to implement the electronic health record (EHR) incentive program established by the American Recovery and Reinvestment
Cloud Computing – Did the City of Los Angeles Make the Right Move?
“Cloud computing” takes many forms, but, fundamentally, it is a computer network system that allows consumers, businesses, and other entities to store data off-site and manage it with third-party-owned software accessed through the Internet. Files and software are stored centrally on a network to which end users can connect to access their files using computers
HIPAA Enforcement Regulations Updated for Penalty Increases and Enhancements under the HITECH Act
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published interim final regulations on October 30, 2009, to update existing enforcement regulations under HIPAA for statutory revisions made by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act. These regulations become effective November 30, 2009, and only address the provisions of the HITECH Act
HIPAA Data Breaches in India Threaten Outsourcing Industry, Require Greater Vigilance at Home
A British TV station investigation into India’s medical transcription industry, known as Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), uncovered unsettling news for British subjects, as well as American citizens. Medical records sent to India to be transcribed and computerized are being sold. The Economic Times report on the investigation out of New Delhi suspects a "hardening of stance on the
Reporting a Breach of HIPAA Protected Health Information to HHS
Little more than one month after the HIPAA breach notification regulations became effective (September 23, 2009), covered entities (health care providers, health plans) and their business associates are struggling with the effects of these new rules. Many are asking:
- What is a breach?
- Do we have to notify in all cases, what are the exceptions?