Anyone who has been to a doctor’s office in the last 12 years, by now, knows that the federal government enacted a privacy and security law known as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. If you have actually taken the time to read the notice of privacy practices presented to you by your doctor, you would know that HIPAA offers patients certain protections with respect to their health information, including notifying them of a “breach” of their health information.
Health-care providers have an enormous amount of information about their patients that is essential for them to provide treatment, operate their facilities and receive payment for their services. Unfortunately, and most often unintentionally or inadvertently, this health information may be accessed or disclosed by or to an unauthorized third party. When this happens, providers must respond swiftly and precisely to mitigate any harm to the subject patients. The following sets forth an overview of the steps providers should consider when confronted with such a breach.
