Q&A: You’ve got questions! We’ve got answers!
Physician Practice Insider, April 19, 2016
Submit your questions to Associate Editor Nicole Votta at nvotta@hcpro.com and we will work with our experts to provide you with the information you need.
Q: We are in the process of building a new office. Would it be HIPAA compliant to have an outside locked mailbox for our general postal mail and therapist paperwork that is dropped off at night? If not, would a mail slot on our front door work better?
A: An outside locked mailbox will suffice to secure incoming mail and therapist paperwork. Ensure that the mailbox is secure and not easily broken into. If the mailbox is secured with a key, it's a good idea to implement a solid key management program to track who has a key. Keys should be recovered when an employee resigns or is terminated. If an employee leaves without returning his or her key, it's wise to re-key the lock on the mailbox.
Editor’s note: Chris Apgar, CISSP, answered this question for Briefings on HIPAA. This information does not constitute legal advice. Consult legal counsel for answers to specific questions.
Related Products
-
Physician Practice Perspective
Physician Practice Perspective subscribers can find the archive of issues on the Part B News website. Find more information...
-
Medical Environment Update
A subscription to Medical Environment Update pays for itself by saving you time sorting through complex regulations and...
-
HealthLeaders Media Physician Leaders
HealthLeaders Media Physician Leaders offers commentaries that focus on the hottest issues for doctors as well as concise...
-
Medical Environment Update - Electronic and Print, 1 year
A subscription to Medical Environment Update pays for itself by saving you time sorting through complex regulations and...
-
Medical Environment Update - Electronic, 1 year
A subscription to Medical Environment Update pays for itself by saving you time sorting through complex regulations and...
Most Popular
- Articles
-
- Don't forget the three checks in medication administration
- Note similarities and differences between HCPCS, CPT® codes
- Practice the six rights of medication administration
- Q&A: Primary, principal, and secondary diagnoses
- What to include on the incident report
- OB services: Coding inside and outside of the package
- What does case-mix index mean to you?
- Understanding and coding for critical care services
- Pneumonia with a negative chest x-ray: Clinical diagnoses, physician documentation, and coding guidelines
- Neurological checks for head injuries
- E-mailed
-
- CDC: First Case of Wuhan Coronavirus Confirmed in U.S.
- What to include on the incident report
- Ask yourself: Could your CDI program work at home?
- ICD-10-CM contracts the flu
- How to assign the correct ED E/M code
- Free tool: Peer evaluation tool for charge nurse
- Five keys to creating a CHF disease management program
- Documentation challenges for skin and dermatology coding
- Consider two options for coding Rho(D) immune globulin given in pregnancy
- Coding tip: Deep vs. superficial pin removal
- Searched
