On April 14, 2003, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, also known as HIPAA, took effect and mandates that most health care providers such as hospitals, doctors, and pharmacies follow a strict set of federal rules regarding patient privacy.
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Editor?s Note: The following information on the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 was provided to the Republican-Times by Ralph Goodrich, CEO of Wright Memorial Hospital.
On April 14, 2003, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, also known as HIPAA, took effect and mandates that most health care providers such as hospitals, doctors, and pharmacies follow a strict set of federal rules regarding patient privacy.
In accordance with these rules, Wright Memorial Hospital, the Wright Memorial Physicians? Clinic and the Wright Memorial Home Health/ Hospice, all part of the Saint Luke?s Health System, has implemented many new processes and forms to comply with these privacy laws.
One of the first things most patients and their representatives will notice is a new document called, ?Notice of Privacy Practices.? Each patient must be offered a copy during their initial registration beginning on and after April 14, 2003. This is also noted in the computer system at the hospital to help reduce extra papers for our patients during their next visit. This notice provides information to the patient and their representatives about their privacy rights when seeking health care at Wright Memorial Hospital or any Saint Luke?s Health System facility.
During registration patients will be asked to sign Consent and Agreement of Health Care Services form. This new form contains a special section for those patients that may need to be admitted to the hospital and their choice regarding the degree to which information about their admission is provided to the media and/ or other individuals. If the patient wishes others to know that they are in the hospital, the patient must note this on the form.
All callers and visitors must be able to tell the hospital staff the first and last name of the patient before any information such as room number can be provided. If the patient indicates that he/ she does not wish to receive calls or visitors, the hospital will not even acknowledge that this patient is in the hospital if someone calls or stops by.
HIPAA also defines a number of other patient rights including: asking for restrictions on how their protected health information may be used or disclosed (given to others); to review and amend their health care records; and/ or ask and receive a copy of their health care records. The patient may request an alternative way to receive information such as doctor bills or phone calls from their health care provider. These special circumstances are described in some detail in the ?Notice of Privacy Practices? which was discussed above.
Although some of this information sounds new, much of it really isn?t. The federal government has provided some firm rules regarding how health information is used, given, and stored for the better protection of our patients. Wright Memorial continues to be committed to protecting our patients? health information. Wright Memorial is compliant with all HIPAA standards and has procedures in place to train our staff in those HIPAA standards.
More information about HIPPA is available from Keith Olenik, Chief Privacy Officer, Saint Luke?s Health System, 4401 Wornall Road, Kansas City, MO 64111, or by e-mail at [email protected]. Persons can also visit the Saint Luke?s web site at www.saint- lukes.org.