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View Full Version : Reporting hipaa violation in Colorado?


rwagtale
Jan 18, 2011, 01:14 PM
I am receiving faxes, including prescription and refill requests, treatment, evaluation, psychological, and surgical notes for a local physician. I have called and faxed the physician and the billing / e.m.r. company involved numerous times: I am actually receiving more records for more persons each day. How do I stop this worrisome process?

smoothy
Jan 18, 2011, 01:28 PM
Are you sure you got a hold of the people actually sending them... and not the people they were being sent to?

Its harder to figure out who actually sent it in the first place because its usually a peon that does the faxing... adn not the physician themselves. And someone clearly has a wrong number programmed into the fax machines speed dial if it keeps occurring.

I've gotten the same things as well from one specific medical center. It took time... something I don't always have in abbundence, but I eventually got a hold of the right person to correct it. Not easy onless its actually a doctors office and not a medical center with multiple practices.

ballengerb1
Jan 18, 2011, 01:32 PM
Call the doctor who should be getting these faxes and report it to him. He should know who is sending the faxes and how to contact the correct person to fix the issue. This may not be a HIPAA violation.

adthern
Jan 18, 2011, 02:09 PM
To report a violation, try accessing the HHS website (HIPPA is a federal law not a CO law). http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/hipaa/

This is where you can find out how to and where to file a violation form: http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/psa/complaint/index.html

ballengerb1
Jan 18, 2011, 02:14 PM
Its HIPAA and without every detail we don't know that this is a violation. AMA - HIPAA Violations and Enforcement (http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/physician-resources/solutions-managing-your-practice/coding-billing-insurance/hipaahealth-insurance-portability-accountability-act/hipaa-violations-enforcement.shtml) The best way to get this to stop is to call the doctor who should be getting these faxes, he needs and wants them and will move quickly to get this fixed

adthern
Jan 19, 2011, 03:31 PM
Yup, Hipaa (sorry for the typo). We don't need to know the details, its not for us to determine if it is a violation (though faxing to a non-verified phone number is). I have dealt with HIPAA violation's at work and that is a frequent one. The procedure is supposed to be a confidentiality sheet goes through first, it is verified by the recipient and then the protected records go through, with another cover sheet. It is a huge pain in the behind for the med records people and they often fail to do it.