June 25, 2013
I want to thank a listserv member for reminding me to discuss insurance for HIPAA Privacy Exposure.
The threat of potential liability is not new for anyone reading this - however - the threat of liability most prevalent is malpractice. The amount of money and concern protecting against malpractice continues to grow, as does the threat in our litigious society. However, malpractice is not the only area of exposure for practitioners, and for many practitioners, malpractice exposure is not the most likely threat to their practice. Instead, there is a higher likelihood of non-compliance exposure, HIPAA being a relatable example. For each patient who walks through your door, you are required to have consent for access to, use and disclosure of their protected health information. You are also required to have a notice of privacy practices on file (updated before September) available for patient access explaining how you may use and disclose their protected health information. Other policies you are required to have and follow are additional training policies and access policies related to patient information, access, uses and disclosures. Failure to abide by the requirements may lead to fines, lawsuits, licensure ramifications, etc. The aforementioned exposure is financially and emotionally enormous for any practice, and also more likely than malpractice exposure. However, while you would not practice without malpractice insurance, you likely have not considered insuring your practice against the risk of HIPAA exposure. This is a mistake; one that may cost you. Policies are available by reputable carriers at a low premium cost protecting against unauthorized disclosures, electronic breaches, paper breaches, etc., as well as coverage for legal defense. For those of you concerned about your exposure, remember, exposure is not coming from just one source - patient malpractice - but additional sources as well. The best way to protect yourself is to insure against risk. If you are concerned about HIPAA, don't wait, look into insuring against potential risk.
Looking for information on the HIPAA changes, effective September 2013, view our free HIPAA Webinar below -
FREE HIPAA WEBINAR target="_self">AVAILABLE HERE ON CHANGES EFFECTIVE SEPTEMBER 2013
target="_self">Click here to hear Jennifer's webinar on the new HIPAA Requirements. target="_self"> anytime at this link -
