I dive into the HIPAA weeds on a daily basis, and am sometimes asked about similarities and differences between HIPAA and the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Fox colleague Nate Williams provoked me to think more about this topic. Nate took a close look at key definitions and provisions in these privacy laws
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Foreshadowing HIPAA Under the New Administration: Will Transparency Trump Privacy?
By Elizabeth Litten on
It may not come as a surprise that Congressman Tom Price, MD (R-GA), a vocal critic of the Affordable Care Act who introduced legislation to replace it last spring, was selected to serve as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in the Trump administration. What may come as a bit…
MINNESOTA BLUES GET HEALTH RECORDS SNOOPING BLUES
By William Maruca on
A registered nurse employed by Minnesota Blue Cross Blue Shield (BC/BS) with a history of drug offenses allegedly accessed a prescription drug database 249 times without a legitimate purpose, according to a report by Minneapolis CBS affiliate WCCO posted by reporter Esme Murphy.
The nurse, Jim Johnson, reportedly had been previously assigned by BC/BS under…
“Step Away from that Subpoena” and Review HIPAA Obligations Before Producing PHI
By Elizabeth Litten on
If you receive a subpoena, discovery request, or even a court order demanding the release or production of documents or files that may contain protected health information (PHI), are you obligated to comply? The surprising answer, in many cases, is “no”. Even more surprising may be the fact that, in attempting to comply with what…