Author: Jones, Rhys W.

Source: In Confidence (newsletter)

Publication Date: January 02, 2001

Background


The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and its related transaction, security, and privacy regulations apply directly to certain entities, but not to all recipients of health information. The regulations define three classes of “covered enti....

Author: Amatayakul, Margret

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: April 2001

The qualifying "perhaps" recognizes that today, more than ever before, information flows through our organizations at lightning speed. More people within an organization can easily print healthcare documents, automatically send a fax, and e-mail attachments. The risk of even well-int....

Author: Galias, Delores

Source: AHIMA Convention

Publication Date: September 23, 2002

Author: Dimick, Chris

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: June 2008

Electronic documentation habits such as copy and paste save valuable time, but they can ruin the record.

As the patient’s health worsened, a hospital stay of days turned to weeks. But through the various tests and physician visits, the progress notes generated in the hospita....

Author: Becker, Joanne

Source: Journal of AHIMA - Coding Notes

Publication Date: February 2003

Sometimes starting small can mean big results. A few months ago, I joined Iowa’s regional HIPAA Strategic National Implementation Process (SNIP) workgroup. The goal of local and regional SNIP workgroups is to create as much collaboration as possible to ensure compliance by all covered ent....

Author: AHIMA

Source: AHIMA practice brief

Publication Date: December 2010

The content in this practice brief has been retired. This version is made available for historical purposes only. More recent information is available here.

Author: Burrington-Brown, Jill; Hughes, Gwen

Source: AHIMA practice brief

Publication Date: June 2003

This practice brief has been updated. See the latest version here. This version is made available for historical purposes only.

Author: Hughes, Gwen

Source: AHIMA practice brief

Publication Date: May 2000

This practice brief has been updated. See the latest version here. This version is made available for historical purposes only.

Author: Hughes, Gwen

Source: AHIMA practice brief

Publication Date: April 1996

This practice brief has been updated. See the latest version here. This version is made available for historical purposes only.

Author: Nicholson, Ruby E.

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: February 2002

For HIM professionals in behavioral health settings, the HIPAA privacy regulations pose a downright dilemma. Here’s why.


The privacy rule defines psychotherapy notes as:


Notes recorded in any medium by a mental health professional documenting or analyzing....

Author: Cogley, Janis

Source: AHIMA Convention

Publication Date: October 15, 2004

Introduction

The origins of using diagnosis codes in hospitals and other healthcare settings goes back to the early 1950s when the US Public Health Service and the Veterans Administration extended the concept of using the International Classification of Diseases to hospital indexing of m....

Author: Cothran, Carey L.; Kost-Woodrow, Beth

Source: AHIMA Convention

Publication Date: September 28, 2010

Background

With the increased governmental funding for implementation of electronic health records and increased prevalence of regional data exchange, comes increased provider obligation, strengthening of regulation and likely unprecedented enforcement activities. The emerging landscape....

Author: Parisien, Darryl

Source: In Confidence (newsletter)

Publication Date: September 02, 2001

Is your organization taking the necessary actions to comply with the security regulations of HIPAA? Do you believe you have more time to comply? If you think you do, you might want to do a little more research. Take note that United States Code Title 42 Section 1320d-2 states:
Each pers....

Author: White, Susan E

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: April 2013

One of the newest buzz words in data analytics is “Big Data,” and the data created through the healthcare industry is some of the “biggest” around. The widespread implementation of electronic health records (EHRs) and the need to share data to measure quality and ma....

Author: Hughes, Gwen

Source: AHIMA practice brief | Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: January 2003

This practice brief has been updated. See the latest version here. This version is made available for historical purposes only.

Author: Stanfill, Mary H

Source: Journal of AHIMA - Coding Notes | Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: March 2006

Code assignment for physician evaluation and management (E/M) services is inherently problematic because of the multiple coding rules and reporting guidelines that must be applied and the subjectivity of the codes. Consistent E/M coding practices are critical in the physician practice setting.....

Author: Ruano, Michael

Source: In Confidence (newsletter)

Publication Date: June 02, 2003

Part four in a 10-part series.
This article is the fourth of a 10-part series that introduces the domains of information security and relates them to federal HIPAA regulations. The information security domain of cryptography is probably the most complex and mathematical of all the domai....

Author: Gellman, Robert

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: October 2006

In the past year there have been some surprising twists in the interpretation of HIPAA’s criminal penalty. This article reviews current views of the penalty and considers the effect on sanctions for healthcare workers who fail to comply with health privacy policies.
The Statute and....

Author: Hughes, Gwen

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: October 2002

Many HIM professionals will be called upon to perform an extraordinary feat during the next six months. They will be asked to bring one or more organizations into compliance with the HIPAA privacy rule by April 14, 2003. While this task is challenging in organizations that began such efforts a....

Author: Rozen, Michael J.

Source: In Confidence (newsletter)

Publication Date: December 02, 2002

Consumers and patients are becoming increasingly and justifiably worried about the confidentiality of their personal information. Cases of prominent disclosures recently highlighted by the media have heightened the fear of abuse and discrimination from inappropriate disclosure of protected he....

Author: Butler, Mary

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: April 2015

In movies and on television lately, Hollywood has made encryption and decryption look exciting, glamorous, and world-saving. The film The Imitation Game and the BBC show The Bletchley Circle chronicle how British code breakers decrypted military strategy codes from the Nazi encryption tool....

Author: Ingram-Muhammad, Sybil

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: February 2002

How far along the road to compliance with the HIPAA privacy regulation is your organization? This article tells you the steps you should be taking to get in compliance by the April 2003 deadline.

It is February 2002—14 months before your organization has to be compliant with th....

Author: Prophet, Sue

Source: AHIMA Convention

Publication Date: October 10, 2001

Under the new federal administration, no fundamental changes in healthcare fraud enforcement efforts are anticipated. Federal enforcement initiatives have resulted in significant monies being recovered and returned to the Medicare Trust Fund through collection of overpayments and civil penaltie....

Author: Butler, Mary

Source: Journal of AHIMA - website

Publication Date: August 2014

The HIM Problem: Medicare Auditor Scrutiny of Inpatient Claims


This spring, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued its “two midnight rule” which was intended to define and clarify what Medicare considers to be criteria justifying an inpatient st....

Author: Hjort, Beth M.

Source: In Confidence (newsletter) | AHIMA Q and A

Publication Date: September 02, 2001

Q: I understand that HIPAA’s privacy rule sets up expectations for covered entities to help ensure that protected health information disclosed to business associates is restricted for redisclosure. How can covered entities control them?
A: The Department of Health and Human Services rea....

Author: Hutchins, Sheri

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: November 2007

Nearly five years after its implementation, HIPAA’s minimum necessary standards continue to be problematic for many organizations. A recent report released by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality confirms the ongoing confusion over interpretation of the requirement.1

....

Author: AHIMA

Source: HIPAA Conference 2000

Publication Date: March 13, 2000

 

Conference Handouts


If you weren't able to attend the HIPAA Conference in March, you can review the text of handouts and presentations provided at the sessions.

....

Author: Scott, Judith A.; Clary, Karen J.; Smith, Marlene J.E.

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: October 1999

Medicare fraud. These two words can strike fear in the hearts of healthcare professionals. In the wake of recent federal investigations alleging fraudulent billing practices at hospitals across the nation,1 this fear may be justified. In recent years, there have been an unprecedented....

Author: Emery, Steven; McDavid, Jan P; Robb, Deborah

Source: AHIMA Convention

Publication Date: September 25, 2010

Introduction

Nearly ten years since the Office of Inspector General (OIG) first issued guidance for physician practices on compliance with federal legislation, many physician practices still lack a proactive, cost-effective approach to achieving compliance. Taking this critical step can....

Author: Amatayakul, Margret; Johns, Merida L.

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: November 2002

Depending on how you count them, there are anywhere from 20 to 60 new policies, procedures, forms, and other related documents required by HIPAA. Its training requirements specify that all members of the work force must be trained on policies and procedures with respect to protected health inf....

Author: Emery, Steven; McDavid, Jan P; Robb, Deborah

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: March 2010

Managing compliance can be a challenge for physician practices short on staff and budget.
Reducing risk and capturing benefits begins with a focus on the areas of greatest concern.

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) first issued guidance for physician practices on compliance....

Author: Swope, Shana

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: June 2000

After Medicare regulations and the accompanying paperwork threatened to overwhelm an outpatient rehabilitation center, staff took steps to simplify the recertification process. The result was improved efficiency plus increased commitment to the electronic medical record. He....

Author: Bryant, Gloryanne H.

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: September 1999

Earlier this year, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) informed the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) that "the DRG system is vulnerable to abuse by providers who wish to increase reimbursement inappropriately through upcoding, particularly so within certain DRGs.&....

Author: Prophet, Sue

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: January 1998

"Fraud," "abuse," "upcoding," "unbundling," and "compliance" have all become buzzwords in the news media. Eliminating healthcare fraud and abuse has become a top priority for the federal government. Government investigations are on the rise and providers everywhere tremble at the thought of b....

Author: Dinh, Angela K.

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: September 2009

In 2008 the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) conducted 10 HIPAA security assessments in covered entities (CEs) nationwide. CMS’s stated purpose was not to identify flaws but to gain a true understanding of industry compliance with the HIPAA security rule.

CMS co....

Author: U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

Source: External web site

Publication Date: July 22, 2011

Author: Bryant, Gloryanne H.

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: November 2008

Question: What is the new Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services ruling on use of signature stamps?

Answer: The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has made it clear that it will only accept signatures that are handwritten, electronic, or facsimiles of original wri....

Author: Dimick, Chris

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: April 2015

The spiders of time have been hard at work on the US healthcare privacy and security rules, to the point that their place in health IT interoperability has become fogged and is inhibiting their proper role in the meaningful exchange of health information, according to Lucia Savage, JD, th....

Author: U.S. Federal Communications Commission

Source: Government (U.S.)

Publication Date: July 07, 2004

The FCC clarifies that the use of Telecommunications Relay Services to facilitate telephone calls between health care professionals and patients does not violate the HIPAA Privacy Rule.

Author: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Source: Federal Register

Publication Date: September 15, 2004

Author: Bryant, Gloryanne H.; Fletcher, Robin

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: September 2000

A year ago, the Journal of AHIMA reported on the newly created Payment Error Prevention Program (PEPP), which went into effect in August 1999. What has happened since then?
Best Billing Practices

PEPP was created to reduce Medicare prospective payment system (PPS) ....

Author: Weintraub, Abner E.

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: May 2003

With the April 14 HIPAA privacy deadline behind us, many covered entities are still struggling to become compliant. Limited budgets and staff, conflicting advice, and unforeseen delays have all conspired to keep many covered entities from meeting the deadline.


What do you tell....

Author: Easterling, Sharon

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: March 2012

Learning from last year's denials and preparing for what's ahead will help providers avoid being stung in 2012.


When the Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) permanent program began in 2009, providers were hopeful that the process for identifying underpayments and overpayments w....

Author: Ruano, Michael

Source: In Confidence (newsletter)

Publication Date: July 02, 2003

Part five in a 10-part series.
This article is the fifth of a 10-part series that introduces the domains of information security and relates them to federal HIPAA regulations. The information security domain of security architecture and models speaks to computer architectures, security....

Author: Butler, Mary

Source: Journal of AHIMA - website

Publication Date: April 2014

The HITECH-HIPAA Final Rule has changed the way healthcare organizations do business, and those with seats in the C-suite can’t afford to stay out of the weeds with the new regulations.


Daniel Solove, founder of the HIPAA training firm TeachPrivacy, and law professor at....

Author: AHIMA Work Group

Source: AHIMA toolkit

Publication Date: March 2014

This toolkit addresses planning, implementing, and maintaining a breach management process. It includes tools for goal setting, prioritizing developmental steps, determining roles and responsibilities, monitoring risk factors, and mitigation solutions.

Author:

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: January 2007

“Do what you are doing larger, louder, and faster,” David Brailer, PhD, MD, told attendees during his general session presentation. Brailer, who served as national coordinator for health information technology in the Department of Health and Human Services from 2004 to 2006, thanked the audienc....

Author: Scichilone, Rita A

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: February 2002

To protect the Medicare Trust Fund from being drained, government health plans must provide coverage restrictions for unnecessary health services in vulnerable patient populations. One restriction mechanism is the provision of edits that look for valid reason-for-visit codes for selected servi....

Author: Quinsey, Carol Ann

Source: In Confidence (newsletter)

Publication Date: December 02, 2003

Question: We are having problems documenting HIPAA training for students on training rotations in our facility. Training program directors locally are reluctant to sign business associate (BA) agreements. How are others handling this?
Answer: Many organizations are treating students as....

Author: Kaldal, Karen

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: November 1998

Traditionally, payers in the healthcare industry have relied on external tips or complaints for starting points for fraud investigations. But recently the number of leads on fraud activity has increased as the public becomes more aware of the issue. To combat this problem, payers have begun to....

Author: Butler, Mary

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: November 2014

Don’t let the quiet before the storm fool you. Regulators might be hushed now, but compliance activity is expected to keep health information management (HIM) professionals on their toes throughout 2015. As electronic health record (EHR) implementation becomes more pervasive, so too does....

Author: McLendon, Kelly

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: March 2012

There has been a lack of enforcement of the privacy and security rules ever since HIPAA's inception. As such the adoption of comprehensive HIPAA compliance programs has lagged behind EHR development and implementation.

This in turn has caused little funding to be budgeted by provide....

Author: Wiedemann, Lou Ann

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: April 2017

Editor’s Note: The following is an excerpt from the new “External HIPAA Audit Readiness Toolkit” developed by AHIMA. The full toolkit is free for AHIMA members.


THE HITECH OMNIBUS Rule mandated that the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) condu....

Author: Hubbartt, William S.

Source: In Confidence (newsletter)

Publication Date: March 02, 2003

Over the past two years, health information managers have been involved in planning and implementing workplace changes in anticipation of the medical privacy requirements of HIPAA. One of those compliance requirements is to provide employee training.
Organizations subject to HIPAA must....

Author: Patel, Nilay B.

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: July 2005

With the April 21, 2005, and April 20, 2006 (for small health plans) HIPAA security regulation deadlines, covered entities may question what a revised contract for a business associate (BA) should contain and how it should be executed. Official guidance is scattered in the Federal Register and....

Author: Rode, Dan

Source: AHIMA testimony and comments

Publication Date: March 05, 2002

AMERICAN HEALTH INFORMATION MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION
233 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 2150

Chicago, Illinois 60601-1090


March 5, 2002


Honorable Tommy G. Thompson
Secretary, US Department of Health and Human Services
Attn: Christy Schmidt
....

Author: McLendon, Kelly

Source: AHIMA toolkit

Publication Date: January 2017

overview of the Office of Civil Right’s HIPAA Audit Protocol, including summaries

Author: Beckett, Barb; Beidler, Aurae; Halpert, Aviva M.; Davis, Nancy; Gorton, Elisa R.; McLendon, Kelly; Rose, Angela Dinh; Shindell, Roger; Tucker, DeAnn

Source: AHIMA toolkit

Publication Date: January 2017

The toolkit you are trying to access is available to non-members for $99.95.
Click here to purchase.

Author: Rode, Dan

Source: AHIMA testimony and comments

Publication Date: April 15, 2002

AMERICAN HEALTH INFORMATION MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION

1730 M Street, NW, Suite 409

Washington, DC 20036


 

April 15, 2002

Thomas A. Scully
Administrator
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
Department of Health and Human....

Author: Viola, Allison F.

Source: AHIMA Advocacy and Policy

Publication Date: February 25, 2011

Author: AHIMA

Source: AHIMA newsletter

Publication Date: December 06, 2002

Special E-alert
December 6, 2002
OCR Posts Detailed HIPAA Priva....

Author: AHIMA House of Delegates

Source: Journal of AHIMA | AHIMA HoD Resolution

Publication Date: January 1998

Background

In August 1996, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) [Public Law 104-191] established the infrastructure and funding for federal fraud and abuse efforts. This legislation authorizes the appropriation of $104 million in 1997, with increases in....

Author: Downing, Katherine

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: February 2017

Healthcare organizations are under constant attack from cybercriminals due to the richness of information they collect, store, and disseminate that can also be used for multiple types of fraud and identity theft. Stolen credit card information only lasts until the victim cancels the card,....

Author:

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: February 2002

HIPAA is an issue in hospitals across the nation, but what about other kinds of facilities—such as long-term care, behavioral health, or home care organizations? They, too, need to address HIPAA. We asked three HIM professionals who work in these settings to briefly address how HIPAA is ch....

Author: McSteen, Thomas

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: September 2013

The 2013 HIPAA Omnibus Rule marks a key milestone for implementation of the 2009 Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH). One of the most far-reaching impacts of HITECH and the Omnibus Rule is that business associates (BA) and their subcontractors now mu....

Author: White, Susan E; Kallem, Crystal; Viola, Allison F.; Bronnert, June

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: June 2011

In April the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published a notice of proposed rulemaking for the Medicare Shared Savings Program. The program was mandated by the Affordable Care Act to encourage the development of accountable care organizations (ACOs) in Medicare.

The....

Author: Amatayakul, Margret

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: January 2005

As healthcare organizations put the finishing touches on their HIPAA security compliance plans, many are finding that updating access controls is not easy. Clinicians often scoff at the word “control” in general and at “access control” in particular. Not all products ar....

Author: Crump, Dawn; Hennum, Jeannie

Source: Journal of AHIMA - website

Publication Date: March 2015

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has a dramatic ripple effect on the healthcare industry—and will continue to create seismic shifts for many years to come. One important change for health information management (HIM) professionals to understand is the impact of ACA on health plan audits. Alre....

Author: AHIMA

Source: AHIMA

Publication Date: April 12, 2004

The results of a survey conducted by AHIMA to assess the current state of HIPAA privacy within the healthcare industry. These results are being released in conjunction with the first annual National Health Information Privacy and Security Week.

Author: Prophet-Bowman, Sue

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: January 2003

This article includes highlights of the OIG’s 2003 Work Plan. The plan can be found in its entirety on the OIG Web site at http://oig.hhs.gov/ publications/workplan.html.
Many of the projects described in the 2003 Work Plan of the Office of Inspector General (OIG) of the Department of Hea....

Author: Prophet-Bowman, Sue

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: September 2003

Although the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) has already saved tax payers more than $12 million this year, it offers still more cost-saving recommendations for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in its annual Red Book that hav....

Author: Amatayakul, Margret

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: May 2002

HIPAA’s administrative simplification requirements aim to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the healthcare system. As an industry, we expect to improve productivity and reduce costs. Yet many providers anticipate spending a significant amount of money to comply with the requirem....