An interesting federal case in the Southern District of Ohio Eastern Division reminds us that the HIPAA statute does not provide for a private cause of action. And so, when the Ohio Hospital for Psychiatry sought to compel a former employee to return patient information she had allegedly removed improperly, the court had to deny…
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NJ Bill To Protect Privacy Of Accident Victims Signed Into Law
It’s a shame that we even need bills like this. Legislation that would prohibit first responders from photographing or disclosing pictures of accident victims and patients to the public without their consent has been signed into law by Gov. Chris Christie. “This is not an injunction on our first responders, who act bravely and save…
Breach Penalties: Comparing U.S., U.K.
Marianne Kolbasuk McGee writes: The United Kingdom and the United States are both cracking down on healthcare organizations that have experienced information breaches. But they’re taking very different approaches. In the U.K., the emphasis is on publicizing frequent financial penalties, often for relatively small breach incidents. In the U.S., the focus has been on announcing…
Videos from Health Privacy Summit available online
The Health Privacy Summit has made materials and videos available online for its recent conference, “Is There an American Health Privacy Crisis?” Check them out at http://www.healthprivacysummit.org/d/3cq92g/6X Video Highlights: Patient Story about Privacy Loss: “Julie” bravely tells how she was harmed when her sensitive mental health information was used by staff members of a Boston health care…
PRC launches medical privacy microsite for California residents
From PRC, a new resource for California residents: Many people consider their health information to be highly sensitive, deserving the strongest protection under the law. Medical records often contain not only personal health-related information – considered by most to be strictly confidential — but also Social Security numbers and dates of birth — the keys…
Ca: Breach of Privacy at Eastern Health (updated)
VOCM reports: There has been a significant breach of privacy at Eastern Health involving about 122 patients. The authority says their records were inappropriately accessed by an employee, who has since been terminated. CEO Vickie Kaminski says there is zero tolerance of wilfil breaches of patient privacy. All employees sign a confidentiality pledge, and are…