When HIPAA and Credentialing Collide
Audio Conference

Date: September 25, 2003
Time: 1:00 - 2:30 pm (Eastern Time)

Faculty: Susan Lapenta & Phil Zarone

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend."

Hospitals may soon find that this old saying applies to enforcement of the HIPAA Privacy Rule. Enforcement of the HIPAA Privacy Rule is currently "complaint driven." The government investigates complaints of privacy violations but does not actively audit the privacy practices of hospitals, physician offices and other covered entities.

Individuals with a grudge against the hospital are a likely source of privacy complaints to the federal government. No one is more likely to hold a grudge against the hospital than a practitioner who has been subject to an adverse credentialing decision and may welcome the opportunity to take the hospital to task for perceived violations of HIPAA during the credentialing process.

Horty Springer's Susan Lapenta and Phil Zarone will discuss ways to ensure that your credentialing process does not give disgruntled practitioners an excuse to complain about HIPAA privacy violations to the federal government.

Susan and Phil will address a wide variety of credentialing/HIPAA questions including:

• A physician applying for reappointment has very low volume at the hospital. Can you look at medical records from his office without obtaining patient authorizations?
• At reappointment, you learn that a physician has been the subject of disciplinary action at another hospital. Can you obtain a copy of the relevant documents, including medical records, expert reports, and peer recommendations, without violating HIPAA?
• During an investigation, you want to use an expert to perform a chart review. Do you need the patient's authorization?
• The physician under review wants to send the same records to his expert. What steps do you and the physician have to take before you can provide a copy of the records? Are the rules the same if the physician wants to share this information with his attorney?
• The MEC has required a physician to undergo a psychological evaluation. How can you share information with, and obtain information from, the physician evaluator without violating HIPAA?
• There are a number of participants in a medical staff hearing (hearing panel members, presiding officer, court reporter, attorneys) who will have access to the protected health information (PHI) of the patients whose care is subject to review. How do you stay on the right side of HIPAA in this setting?
  

Registration Fee: $195

Audio CD only: $195

With registration, CDs are available
for an additional $50

ORDER NOW

With purchase, you will receive online access to
supplementary materials.

Questions? Contact us via E-mail or call 1-800-245-1205