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HIPAA Privacy and Pennsylvania Confidentiality Laws

Names the Agency’s HIPAA Privacy Official, sets out when patient information may be used and shared, protects OASIS data, gives patients their HIPAA rights within the federal time frames, and applies the Pennsylvania rule that the clinical record is privileged and confidential and released outside the Agency only with the patient’s written consent unless law or a third-party contract provides otherwise (28 Pa. Code §601.36(c)).

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About this policy
Policy number
PA-HH-PRV-01
Version
1.0
Main rule
45 CFR Part 164 Subpart E
Library
Pennsylvania home health · 56 policies
Category
Privacy
Sections
16

In short

  • Share patient information only with people who need it for care, payment or the Agency’s work, and only as much as they need.
  • Do not discuss patients in public, and never post about a patient on social media, even without a name.
  • Send anyone who asks for records (police, lawyers, insurers, reporters) to the office. Do not hand over records yourself.
  • Give every new patient the Notice of Privacy Practices and get the signed acknowledgment.
  • Report a lost folder, lost phone or misdirected fax to the Privacy Official, Lee Sample, right away.

What's inside

16 sections. The full text comes with the One-time Policy Pack.

Full text with a package
  • Terms of Reference
  • 1. Purpose
  • 2. Scope
  • 3. Definitions
  • 4. Policy Statement (45 CFR Part 164 Subpart E)
  • 5. OASIS Confidentiality
  • 6. When Patient Information May Be Shared
  • 7. Patient Privacy Rights
  • 8. Procedure
  • 9. Responsibilities
  • 10. Records and Compliance Monitoring
  • 11. Staff Training
  • 12. References
  • 13. Related Policies and Forms
  • 14. Approval
  • 15. Revision History

An inspector may ask

  • Who is your privacy official? Show me the Notice of Privacy Practices you gave this patient and the acknowledgment.
  • How do your nurses protect patient information in the car and in the patient’s home?

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