HIPPA ANSWERS

HIPPA ANSWERS

mark Kuhn RTo

4/12/2013

I appreciate all the responses and I can see that I am glad I asked because
 after the many responses I received apparently HIPPA standards are clear
as mud. I will just inform patient or client that I will never share there
information nor will I call anyone to solicit business from them. Ok here
are the responses with names omitted.
 
Thanks
Mark
 
 
Hi
First, they are not YOUR patients.
When a business is sold it is common for the patient records to be
part of the sale. In fact, it's smart for a seller to transfer the
records to the new owner, it allows them to avoid any Medicare or
state problems with retaining patient records for five to seven years.
So if the new owners also bought the patient files as part of the
sale, they are withing HIPPA guidelines to contact the patients.


Violation of hippa and Medicare dmepos supplier standards.
 
Check the time between the patient being seen and the phone call. Then
check the Medicare supplier standards, specifically with regard to telephone
communications. If it is breaking the Medicare supplier standards, have the
patient file a complaint with the OIG fraud hotline for Medicare. Also
provide the patient the Palmetto number, see if you still have the card from the
person who did your facility inspection, to complain about this.

And Medicare
 
Thanks Mark for your clarification of your first email......I can see where
 
that may have offended some folks
 
I am sure that you will find small minded people in any profession. They
want to make sure that you know that they are special and different and
more
important than you are.
They are really saying that they are insecure with their station in life.
Back when I was a technician I too would refer to someone that I was
trying
to help as my patient.

sorry to bother you. Obviously this apology arose from email comments that
you received. I was just wondering, were the comments directed at the use
of a possessive tense my, or referring to the individual as a patient,
or the combination?

Providers who retire or go out of business often sell their patients'
charts. That is not a HIPAA violation in and of itself. Usually, the patient is
notified of a change in location or provider via letter.
Patients are not typically solicited via phone as it can be perceived, or
sometimes is, a HIPAA violation. It definitely makes them uncomfortable as
your post indicates!

Soliciting for appointments when care is not required is probably a
violation of medicare supplier standards. Reminders for follow-ups and
maintenance of devices (replacement of liners, for example) is not soliciting;
however, it is usually done via letter to avoid confusion and HIPAA violations.

As a neighboring or competing business there is little you can do, except
re-assure people you keep privacy in mind and you are open for business.
Essentially, if the patients are asking you or telling you, you have an
opportunity to invite them to experience your care in a low-pressure
non-soliciting way.

HIPAA violations are a matter between the patient and the provider, not a
second provider. In other words, the only person who can legitimately
complain is the patient or their authorized representative.

I hope this helps you out.
 
If that patient has not been in for an appointment with in 1 yr, it is a
HIPPA violation, even if it is your patient. That is why it is important to
have your patients in for follow ups.
 
 
Yes, This is both a HIPAA and ABC violation. P& O facilities cannot solicit
business. If the business did sell they are supposed to send out a letter
informing the patient that they sold and who they sold it to and the name
of
the new company and their contact information.. It is up to the patient to
call back.


It is illegal for a provider to cold Call a Medicare Beneficiary.
Medicare
looks at it this way...if a patient needs something, they will seek out the
provider. The provider should not be the one seeking out the patients.
 
in addition if you look at the standards, especially if it is a medicare
patient, one of the standards places limitations on when/if they are able to
contact the patient after a service is provided. the way I interpret the
standard is that if the patient was a previous patient, then they can be
contacted within a reasonable timeframe regarding follow-up. the trouble is
determining with the said patients when they were last seen by that company
and what do you do about it. not sure about that. my best guess would be the
p[atient would have to complain to medicare but i am not sure.

if somebody is giving you grief about calling someone my patient I
wouldn't worry about it. seems like some people have nothing better to do than
criticize everything on theses forums. i call my patients my patients as
well. firstly i don't know why that would offend anybody and if it does then
i don't care. we provide a service to our patients and if everybody felt
that way we would be a lot better off as a field.
 
Making unsolicited telephone contacts to Medicare beneficiaries.
Such contacts are prohibited unless the supplier has written permission
from the beneficiary to make telephone contact or the
supplier is contacting a beneficiary to whom the supplier had
provided an item or service during the preceding 15-month period.

This was from Medicares 1999 manual..it's the same today but I didn't have
time to find the most recent article.
<URL Redacted>

I would also call any established patient my patient, especially if he /
she calls you to tell you.

Sorry nether HIPPA or ABC will help you, the only response you will ever
get have is if you can prove your competitor has a Criminal record, and then
you will still have to
complain to both HIPPA or ABC and maybe they will think about it.
GOOD LUCK

Check out the two links below and the attached document. ... states that
any covered entity that witnesses or has reasonable suspicion as to illegal
activities involving a breach of PHI and/or HIPPA violation that they are
required to submit a notice to HHS-OCR. That means that when DAL suspicion
as to how a certain provider obtained a referral and there is no documented
proof of said referral that they are REQUIRED to file a breach notification
with the Secretary of HHS-OCR. Not filing a breach notification when there
is knowledge of one can leave an entity open to fines and penalties if it
is discovered by other means (i.e. patient reporting). This is serious!

<URL Redacted>
ndex.html

<URL Redacted>