On October 21, 2015 the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General posted Advisory Opinion No. 15-13. This Opinion relates to a request for Advisory Opinion about a plan to offer free van shuttle services to certain medical facilities in an integrated health system. The Office of Inspector General (the “OIG”) concluded … Continue Reading
Community Health Systems announced today, August 18th, that hackers broke into its computers and stole data on 4.5 million patients. The information included names, Social Security numbers, physical addresses, birthdays and telephone numbers. More information on the breach is available at http://money.cnn.com/2014/08/18/technology/security/hospital-chs-hack/index.html … Continue Reading
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR) recently announced yet another enforcement action. Specifically, OCR opened a compliance review of Concentra Health Services (Concentra) upon receiving a report that an unencrypted laptop was stolen from the Springfield Missouri Physical Therapy Center. The investigation revealed that Concentra had previously recognized in … Continue Reading
A HIPAA security risk assessment (SRA) tool was recently made available through HHS. The tool was developed as a collaborative effort between the HHS Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), the HHS Office of Civil Rights (OCR) and the HHS Office of General Counsel (OGC). This SRA tool is intended to … Continue Reading
OCR PREPARING FOR NEXT ROUND OF HIPAA AUDITS By Paul J. Welk, PT, JD In a February 24, 2014 notice published in the Federal Register, the Department of Health and Human Services announced a pre-audit survey of HIPAA covered entities and business associates. The information collected will involve a survey of up to 1,200 covered … Continue Reading
On July 29, 2009, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it will again delay enforcement of the Red Flag Rules, this time until November 1, 2009. The Red Flag Rules apply to health care providers who allow patients to pay for health care services, for example through co-payments and deductibles, in installments. For further details, … Continue Reading
The Department of Labor recently issued new amendments to the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Those amendments have added to the notice requirements under the act, creating both a paperwork chore for businesses and a potential legal trap if the required notices are not provided. This Alert summarizes the new notice requirements. General Notice The General Notice must be posted … Continue Reading
Highmark Medicare Services will be hosting a teleconference on May 15, 2009 at 12:00 p.m. Eastern to discuss the billing of time units for physical and occupational therapy services. The teleconference may reference issues such as CMS Online Manual, Pub. 100-2, Chapter 15, Sections 220 and 230; Change Request CR6321; Frequently Asked Questions; Social Security … Continue Reading
Physical therapy practices invest significant time, money and effort in employee development. Given the significance of the investment in its employees, the practice should consider how to protect this investment. In many jurisdictions this can be accomplished through an employment agreement containing a restrictive covenant, often referred to as a "non-compete". To learn more about … Continue Reading
As a practice grows, it often finds itself with file cabinets full of employee related records and asking the question "Can I ever throw this stuff out?". While certain records can be discarded, it is important to remember that there are state and federal requirements for the retention of employee related records. For a user … Continue Reading
In the physical therapy market place, private practitioners and others are continuously analyzing the practice’s finances in an effort to maintain and increase overall compensation. One area that tends to be overlooked in this analysis is the potentially significant benefit available through a properly drafted and qualified retirement plan program. To read more about the … Continue Reading
When a physical therapy private practice "hires" a physical therapist to provide professional services, questions often rise as to whether the individual is an independent contractor or an employee. It is important that the individual be properly classified for a number of reasons, including potential liability imposed by the Internal Revenue Service in the event … Continue Reading
When most people hear the term "expert" in the medical legal context, they think of a well educated professional on a courtroom witness stand trying to persuade a jury in a certain direction. While this scenario is one role that the expert physical therapist may play, physical therapists may also serve in an expert capacity … Continue Reading
As physical therapy private practice or any other business entity begins to grow, the need for a tool to handle personnel decisions on a regular basis and assist with the legal compliance requirements increases. This tool frequently takes the form of a written employee manual. When drafting an employee manual, there are a number of … Continue Reading
The Federal Trade Commission issue the Red Flag Rules on November 9, 2007. The effective date of the Red Flag Rules is August 1, 2009. Under the Red Flag Rules, a "creditor" that offers or maintains "covered accounts" must develop and implement and identity theft protection program to detect, prevent and mitigate identity theft. To … Continue Reading
Employment-Related Bonus Programs go by many different names. Employers may choose to refer to their particular program as a sign-on, referral, retention, incentive, tuition repayment, loan forgiveness, or other type of bonus. Regardless of the name, it is important for both employers and employees to understand the terms of a particular bonus program and to … Continue Reading
Tucker Arensberg is proud to announce that immigration attorney Piyush Seth has joined the Firm as a Shareholder and has launched the Immigration Law Practice at the Firm.… Continue Reading
In a press release dated April 30, 2009, the FTC indicated that it will delay enforcement of the Red Flag Rules from the original compliance date of May 1, 2009 until August 1, 2009. The FTC indicated that it will soon release a template to assist certain low risk entities in complying with the Rules. As additional … Continue Reading
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, commonly referred to as the "Stimulus Bill", contains multiple provisions which affect the rights and obligations of certain parties under the privacy and security provisions of HIPAA. These changes relate to the application of the security and privacy provisions to business associates; the notification requirements in the event … Continue Reading
