HHS publishes proposed revisions to accounting of disclosures requirements

Published: 2011-06-02 16:46:33
Author: ChiroEco | June 2011

On May 31, 2011, the Department of Health and Human Service (HHS) published its proposed revisions to the accounting of disclosures requirements, one of the more controversial mandates under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule.

 

In short, the proposal would provide patients and enrollees with the ability to learn who has seen their records, through an “access report” (without providing information about the reason), and would provide more detailed information for disclosures of information that are most likely to be of interest to the individual (such as disclosures to law enforcement).

 

HIPAA-covered entities should remember that this is a proposed rule and, therefore, should not rush to make costly changes to systems and processes based on this proposal. Nonetheless, they should understand the proposal and its possible implications, and proactively address some basic issues.
 
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