Legislation and Public Policy
March 12, 2020 | Ada Janocinska | Electronic Health Records | HIPAA | Hospitals | Legislation and Public Policy | Medical Devices and Wearables | Medicare and Medicaid | Private Insurers | Telehealth
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) have finalized two highly anticipated rules that are intended to give patients “unprecedented safe, secure access to their health data.”
ONC will establish a certification process for application programming interfaces (APIs) that will meet certain interoperability
Read MoreMarch 11, 2020 | Eric D. Fader | COVID-19 | Home Health | Hospitals | Legislation and Public Policy | Medicare and Medicaid | Nursing Homes | Private Insurers | Telehealth
Over the past week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a flurry of guidance documents and FAQs regarding COVID-19 for healthcare providers in private practice, hospitals, nursing homes, hospices and dialysis facilities, and for Medicare Advantage and Part D insurance plans. The guidance includes how to bill and collect for coronavirus
Read MoreMarch 10, 2020 | Cannabis | Legislation and Public Policy
The Cannabis Regulation and Taxation Act proposed by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act under consideration by the State Legislature, would mandate social and economic equity programs as part of legalizing adult-use marijuana in New York, to ensure that communities that have been disparately impacted by the “War on
Read MoreMarch 6, 2020 | Eric D. Fader | COVID-19 | Legislation and Public Policy | Medicare and Medicaid | Telehealth
The “Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020,” signed into law by the President on March 6, includes provisions waiving Medicare’s geographic restrictions on telehealth during a public health emergency. This will enable healthcare providers to provide care via telehealth in urban and rural areas as well as in patients’ homes within the “emergency
Read MoreMarch 5, 2020 | Eric D. Fader | COVID-19 | Hospitals | Legislation and Public Policy | Medicare and Medicaid | Pharmaceuticals | Private Insurers | Telehealth
On March 2, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced new regulations on New York health insurers regarding coverage for coronavirus testing and related matters. The State Department of Financial Services (DFS) directive requires insurers to waive cost sharing for COVID-19 testing at emergency room, urgent care and office visits. In addition, Medicaid patients will not
Read MoreFebruary 27, 2020 | Eric D. Fader | Electronic Health Records | HIPAA | Legislation and Public Policy
On February 25, the American Medical Association (AMA) announced the release of its new Patient Records Electronic Access Playbook. The 100-page guide is intended to help physician practices navigate the legal and practical requirements of providing patients with access to their electronic health information.
The Playbook discusses relevant provisions of HIPAA and points out many
Read MoreFebruary 24, 2020 | Rivkin Rounds Staff | HIPAA | Legislation and Public Policy | Litigation
A recent article in Part B News, “Court throws out fee policies for medical record sharing; watch for new rules,” discussed the recent court decision in Ciox Health, LLC v. Alez Azar, et al., which led to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services modifying its guidance regarding charging fees for access to patient
Read MoreFebruary 20, 2020 | Eric D. Fader | Cybersecurity | Electronic Health Records | HIPAA | Legislation and Public Policy
The HIPAA Breach Notification Rule requires that smaller data breaches – those involving fewer than 500 patient records – must be reported to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) no later than 60 days after the end of the calendar year in which the breach occurred. This year, the reporting deadline is
Read MoreFebruary 14, 2020 | Eric D. Fader | COVID-19 | Electronic Health Records | HIPAA | Hospitals | Legislation and Public Policy
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently issued a Bulletin confirming that healthcare entities’ HIPAA obligations continue to apply even in public health emergencies. The February 2020 “HIPAA Privacy and Novel Coronavirus” Bulletin reminds HIPAA covered entities and their business associates that HIPAA Privacy Rule and Security Rule requirements remain in place
Read MoreFebruary 12, 2020 | Ada Janocinska | Electronic Health Records | HIPAA | Legislation and Public Policy | Litigation
In response to a recent federal court decision, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has modified its guidance regarding certain obligations imposed on covered entities when responding to individuals’ requests to send their protected health information (PHI) to third parties. In short, covered entities are no longer required
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