The proposed H.R. 408 Spending Reduction Act of 2011 was recently introduced and SEC. 301. of the same proposes a rather dismal scenario for healthcare providers and related, business entities who yet haven’t upgraded themselves to the HIPPA-compliant EMR format of storing/sharing Patient Healthcare Information. This Act proposes withdrawal of unspent EMR stimulus funds. This means that all unobligated balances of EHR stimulus money introduced as a part of division A of ARRA-American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5), should be withdrawn.

SEC. 302 of this Act emphasizes upon the repeal of many provisions that were presented as a part of the EMR stimulus package. This means that all Recovery Act stimulus benefits offered through subtitles B & C of Title II & III respectively (Division B of ARRA 2009) will be withdrawn.

If this Act is enacted, the results can be rather devastating. For starters, healthcare providers that haven’t adopted EMR software would become immediately lose any chance of ever receiving EMR stimulus benefits. Secondly, healthcare providers Medicare/Medicaid health services are under a greater threat-this is because the concept of ‘meaningful use’ that forms the basis of receiving EMR incentive programs is covered under Title IV of Subtitle B. Thus, nearly $27 billion of unspent stimulus incentives can be repealed!

Why does this make ‘little sense’? This proposal was presented in the 112th Congress (2011-2012) H.R. 408. IH SEC. 301 but HITECH Act doesn’t form a part of tax provisions that are covered under ARRA. Further, H.R. 408 appears to handle HITECH Act in a rather limited (partial) manner, i.e. it focuses only upon the repeal of unspent authorized funding but doesn’t mention anything about how HITECH Act benchmarks, set as a part of Privacy Rule & Security Rule, will be adopted on a nationwide basis. There is no mention of how easier formats for HIPAA-compliant EMR software will be created in a more cost-effective manner.

Related posts:

1. EHR/EMR Hitech Act Stimulus Package
2. HHS Issues HITECH Act HIPAA Enforcement Rule
3. Benefits of President Obama’s Health-care Information System Plan

The HIPAA Act of 1996 has set strict standards regarding a patient’s Protected Health Information (PHI) as a part of its Privacy Rule regulations. The Privacy Rule addresses all issues concerned with saving/accessing/sharing medical & personal information of an individual.

However, this is a very basic definition, as the realm of a Covered Entity implies to all Business Associates that are involved in accessing/sharing an individual’s medical health information. A Business Associate represents all persons or organizations that are involved in the direct functioning of a Covered Entity or act on behalf on a Covered Entity.

As required by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (Inflation Adjustment Act), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued both a direct final rule and a proposed rule today adjusting for inflation the maximum civil money penalty amount for violations of the confidentiality provisions of the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act. These confidentiality provisions are enforced by the Office for Civil Rights (OCR).

The Inflation Adjustment Act requires HHS to adjust for inflation the Patient Safety Act’s civil money penalty amount at least once every four years, beginning from the Patient Safety Act’s date of enactment, which was July 29, 2005. These rules adjust the maximum civil money penalty amount for a violation of the confidentiality provisions of the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act from $10,000 to $11,000.

The public has 30 days to comment on these rules. If no adverse comments are received, the direct final rule will go into effect 90 days after publication, and the proposed rule with be withdrawn. If, however, adverse comments are received during the comment period, the direct final rule will be withdrawn. For more information, visit the OCR web site at http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/.

The HIPAA Privacy Rule
What is HIPPA? The HIPAA Privacy Rule, also called the Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information, provides rules and guidelines for the use/disclosure of an individual’s health information.

You can find our more information on http://whatishipaa.org

See larger image HIPAA Plain & Simple: A Healthcare Professionals Guide to Achieve HIPAA and HITECH Compliance (Paperback) By (author) Carolyn P. Hartley, Edward D., III Jones List Price: $79.95 USD New From: $50.00 In Stock Used from: $42.37 In Stock

Related posts:

1. HHS Issues HITECH Act HIPAA Enforcement Rule
2. Permitted Disclosure and Uses of Information Under HIPAA Privacy Rule
3. Understanding Proposed Repeal of ARRA EMR Stimulus Package