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Issue 12, December 1, 2012 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Ensure that PHI is secure when using portable media and text messaging

  If HIM professionals needed another reason to be concerned with PHI outside of paper records, a...

• Exploit benefits while preventing privacy breaches

  It's fast, it's convenient, and it's on the rise. It is text messaging.

• HIPAA Q&A

  You have questions; we have answers.

• Ethical dilemmas require proactive approach

  Ethical dilemma. These two words make medical coders cringe.

Issue 11, November 1, 2012 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Planning ahead facilitates effective breach response

  Paula Moran, MEd, and Jennifer Edlind, JD, CHC, know what they're talking about when they say...

• Responding appropriately to complaints of noncompliance

  An important part of a compliance officer's job is ­responding to noncompliance complaints.

• Get back to business quickly when disaster strikes

  Business continuity is critical when a disaster or other event that disables any organization's...

• Fundraising, other providers, going out of business

  You have questions about HIPAA; we hae answers.

• Penalties for Medicare fraud, HIPAA violations

  Federal law enforcement officials in Florida, New York, and Texas have announced the following plea...

• Settlement bans Accretive Health in Minnesota

  Accretive Health, Inc., must cease operations in Minnesota and pay $2.5 million to settle a lawsuit...

Issue 10, October 1, 2012 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• OCR protocol information a valuable compliance tool

  It may not be the proverbial keys to the kingdom, but OCR's recently published audit protocol for...

• Observation stays may hurt some patients

  A recent study indicates that more Medicare patients are being assigned to observation services...

• Consider self-audit before responding to request

  Do you audit records before sending them to your Recovery Auditor? If not, your hospital may be one...

• Don't let inadequate security be your downfall

  Mobile devices-thumb drives, smartphones, external hard drives, tablets, and laptop computers-are...

Issue 9, September 1, 2012 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• OCR releases data from first 20 HIPAA compliance audits

  Too many healthcare organizations are receiving ­failing grades for HIPAA compliance, an...

• Know where it goes: Map the flow of your PHI

  If you don't know where all of your PHI is, how can you ensure that you protect it?

• GSK $3 billion settlement largest in U.S. history

  GlaxoSmithKline LLC (GSK) has agreed to plead guilty and pay $3 billion in the largest healthcare...

• Copy fees, inquiries about deceased patients

  You have questions about HIPAA; we have answers.

• It's time to whip your UR committee into shape

  If your utilization review (UR) committee is like many others nationwide, it may not have actually...

Issue 8, August 1, 2012 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• What you might not know about OCR HIPAA audits

  Focus of OCR HIPAA auditors might surprise some healthcare organizations.

• Begin with code of conduct, policies, and procedures

  Healthcare organizations face increasingly complex privacy and security issues as they cope with...

• New criteria could help ensure consistent coding

  New clinical guidelines for malnutrition could help alleviate compliance challenges associated with...

• Test staff knowledge with these scenarios

  Would your staff know how to respond in these situations? Use these scenarios to test their...

• Manage risks associated with mobile devices

  The use of mobile devices, from laptop computers to smartphones, represents a dramatic trend in...

• Take control to reduce the strain from audits

  Case managers have already become familiar with the Medicare Recovery Audit Program. In January...

• Digital signatures, minimum necessary standard

  You have questions about digital signatures and the minimum necessary standard. We have answers.

Issue 7, July 1, 2012 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Managing stress in the compliance world

  A study by the ­Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics and HCCA found a rising number of...

• Inspector General's report: Compliance 'important' work

  Daniel R. Levinson, inspector general of the OIG, has an important message for compliance officers...

• Are your workforce members texting PHI?

  Physicians and other healthcare professionals have embraced the smartphone revolution. One survey...

• Free tool can help you determine whether it's a breach

  When is a breach a breach? Only when it meets the criteria set out by the government.

• Privacy, security concerns high in HIEs

  At the hospital, instead of filling out multiple forms, an attending physician logs on to a...

Issue 6, June 1, 2012 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Develop effective conflict of interest policies for your institution

  Compliance officers must develop and maintain ­effective conflict of interest disclosure...

• An $18.5 million HIPAA lesson for healthcare organizations

  If healthcare organizations take a lesson from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee's (BCBST) $1.5...

• Feeling the heat: Providers share their experiences with Recovery Audit Program and other audits

  Editor's note: Each year HCPro's Revenue Cycle ­Institute reports on the experience of...

• Healthcare system develops mobile device checklist

  Would all your staff members know what to do if their laptop computers were lost or stolen?

Issue 5, May 1, 2012 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Safeguard your organization against immediate jeopardy violations

  Compliance officers never want to hear the words "immediate" and "jeopardy" in...

• Assess the risk of excluded parties at your facility

  Compliance officers must maintain an accurate ­accounting of all current employees and screen...

• Stage 2 won't increase HIPAA requirements

  If your healthcare organization hasn't yet completed a security risk analysis, you just got another...

• Newsletter keeps HIPAA front and center

  How well you train your workforce members will determine whether you score points or encounter...

• Encryption levels, disclosures to BA, employee sanctions

  Q Please explain in an understandable way for ­nontechnical individuals what level of...

• How hospitals can help physicians meet social media challenges

  Hospitals should develop standards and create educational materials to guide physicians in their...

Issue 4, April 1, 2012 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Consider third-party fair market value appraisals to ensure compliance with healthcare regulations

  Compliance officers should consider independent third-party appraisals when evaluating the fair...

• Prepare for the Medicaid Recovery Audit Program now to ensure a smooth transition

  Just as you begin to feel comfortable with your Medicare Recovery Audit Program processes, you must...

• Steps to help your organization respond to a breach

  Breaches happen. How your organization responds when they happen can make all the difference.

Issue 3, March 1, 2012 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Latest study shows major increase in data breaches

  If you thought the healthcare industry was doing a better job protecting patients' PHI, think again.

• Keep up to date with emerging compliance issues

  Increased regulation on a wide range of areas will affect hospitals this year, and unless...

• Improve RAC processes with a designated admissions care manager

  Editor's note: In this excerpt from the HCPro book The RAC Toolkit for Hospitals and Health...

• How to improve your training program

  HIPAA and HITECH have resulted in a whole new career for Tom Dumez, CHP. As human resources...

Issue 2, February 1, 2012 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Being investigated? Follow our dos and don'ts

  If your organization is targeted by a federal investigation or audit, it can get your adrenaline...

• ACO participation comes with new risks for compliance officers

  If your hospital wants to be a part of an accountable care organization (ACO) network, it will...

• Survey shows many organizations experience HIPAA breaches, remain unprepared for an audit

  At the start of 2012, the healthcare industry still has a long way to go when it comes to the state...

Issue 1, January 1, 2012 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Target your efforts for 2012

  The OIG will target the reliability of hospital-related quality measures, the accuracy of present...

• Put the focus on clinical documentation

  Recovery Audit Contractors (RAC) are focusing in on documentation issues and, in response, many...

• Sharing information?

  Communicating with the hospital's board of directors is usually a part of a compliance officer's...

• Consider the threats 'insiders' pose to your security

  HIPAA privacy and security officers often spend a lot of time and effort protecting their...

• SHCC 2011 index

    SHCC 2011 index