Question

Kerry Kaiser, RHIA, is Getwell Hospital’s HIPAA privacy officer and the chair of its HIPAA Compliance Committee. The committee is concerned with all aspects of HIPAA compliance, including transactions, privacy, and security. What items might the committee’s agenda include in each of these three compliance areas, such as departmental concerns in these three compliance areas? Where might Kerry find resources to assist the committee in carrying out its duties? What part(s) of HIPAA Rule apply to these three compliance issues?

Answer 1

The HIPAA Compliance Committee at Getwell Hospital, led by Kerry Kaiser, may consider items on transactions, privacy, and security to ensure compliance. Resources from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and healthcare law specialists can aid the committee. Policymaking must balance treatment costs, patient quality of life, and privacy concerns under legal frameworks such as HIPAA and GINA.

Step-by-step explanation:

HIPAA Compliance Committee Agenda Items

The HIPAA Compliance Committee at Getwell Hospital, chaired by Kerry Kaiser, may include various agenda items related to transactions, privacy, and security of health records. In the transactions compliance area, they should consider patient data in electronic transactions and the use of secure electronic health records systems. For privacy compliance, topics may involve the consent and notification processes for the use of patient information and policies that ensure protection of patient data. In terms of security, the committee should address measures to protect data from breaches and unauthorized access. Departmental concerns across these areas can include the provision and denial of access to patient records, and the training of staff on HIPAA rules and regulations.

Resources for HIPAA Compliance

Kerry Kaiser can find resources for the committee’s duties by referring to official U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) guidelines on HIPAA, attending HIPAA compliance workshops, seeking advice from legal professionals specialized in healthcare law, and using online platforms that provide updates on healthcare regulations.

Developing Policies: Balancing Factors

While developing policies, the committee must address questions concerning the balancing of treatment costs with patient quality of life, and risks to individual privacy. Legal considerations like the confidentiality of sexual partners in specific diseases and concerns regarding genetic information discrimination must also be taken into account as per HIPAA and GINA.

Relevant Parts of HIPAA Rule

The pertinent parts of HIPAA related to these compliance issues include the Privacy Rule, which regulates the use and disclosure of protected health information, the Security Rule that sets standards for safeguarding electronic protected health information, and the Transactions and Code Sets Rule that standardizes electronic health transactions.