Most covered entities were required to be compliant with the HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) Privacy Rule by April 14th, 2003. This Rule, mandating that health plans, health care clearinghouses and most health care providers safeguard the privacy of patient information, has broadly changed how the health care industry conducts itself. While many covered entities have made the necessary changes to ensure compliance, some are still finding ways in which they need to improve their operations. For example, Rite Aid Corporation, a pharmacy giant and one of the nation’s largest drug store chains, settled a complaint this year regarding its information disposal practices. This is just one of many such examples. In fact, Health and Human Services has received over 54,562 HIPAA Privacy Complaints since the April 2003 compliance date.

The number one compliance issue investigated was “impermissible use and disclosure of protected health information.” The number two compliance issue was “lack of safeguards of protected health information.” Protecting health information is much more in depth than just locking-up patient files and ensuring doctor/patient confidentiality. Opportunities to inadvertently violate the Privacy Rule exist in many areas including the patient waiting room. One way to minimize HIPAA violation risks in that situation is to utilize a patient messaging system such as JTECH’s PeopleAlert™ wireless solution with MediPass™ patient pagers. This discreet form of communication protects patient’s right to privacy and meets HIPAA compliance. These requirements aren’t going away so procrastinating won’t help. While future modifications are possible once within a 12 month period in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act, reductions in coverage are not likely. Proactive protection of patient information with a messaging system by JTECH is the best bet.