Health Information Compliance Alert
Saturday Night Fever
Question: How and when should providers distribute their NPPs if a patient calls up on a Saturday night seeking a prescription refill? Florida Subscriber Answer: Providers must distribute NPPs to their patients no later than the first date of service delivery, reminds attorney John Gilliland with Gilliland & Caudill in Indianapolis. With that said, renewing a prescription over the telephone constitutes a service delivery and providers should make every effort to mail out an NPP to the patient on the same day as the call, he states. But if the call occurs on a Saturday night when the office is closed? The Department of Health and Human Services has said that the provider should distribute the NPP on the "same date you provide the service ...quot; if possible," reports Gilliland. "And in my opinion, that allows you to wait until Monday" to mail out the NPP, he says. When mailing out those NPPs, don't forget to send along an acknowledgement of receipt form, adds Gilliland. And while the odds of getting the acknowledgement sent back to you are slim to none, make sure that you've documented your efforts and the reason you couldn't obtain the written acknowledgement, he directs.
Health Information Compliance Alert
- Privacy Strategies:
Be On Guard Against Incidental Uses & Disclosures Snafus
6 expert tips help you minimize your disclosure risk. You're putting a serious cramp in [...] - You Be The Security Expert:
Are Worker's Comp Disclosures Exempt?
Read the question below and decide how you would handle it before you compare it [...] - Security Tool:
Stop PHI Violations With A Workstation Security Policy
When securing your organization's computers and the PHI they contain, the best place to start [...] - Security Strategies:
3 Steps Help You Catch Illegal Employee Behavior
Use these pointers to sniff out your staffers' suspicious activities. If you think your greatest [...] - Security Training:
Take Good Care Of Your Phi
2 "reasonable precautions" you need to know about. Are you certain you're handling your electronic [...] - Reader Questions:
Name-Calling Quandary
Question: Is it okay to call out full names in a waiting room? Can you [...] - Reader Questions:
Saturday Night Fever
Question: How and when should providers distribute their NPPs if a patient calls up on [...] - Industry News:
Medical Identity Theft Plagues Half-Million Americans
Another assault to PHI is quietly gathering strength: medical identity theft. Rising health care costs [...] - Continuing Education:
Medical Records Compliance and HIPAA -- Are You Making These Mistakes?
Your healthcare practice could end up on the Office of Civil Rights’ hit list [...]
