Profile
Vickie B. Ahlers represents health care clients with respect to a variety of issues including regulatory, transactional and contracting issues, HIPAA, medical staff and allied health professionals issues, organizational compliance, and compliance with FDA medical device regulations. Vickie also focuses her practice on privacy and data protection issues for businesses across all industry sectors. She has handled more than 300 breach analyses and response efforts, ranging from preparation and evaluation of privacy & data protection processes, incident evaluation & response, and regulatory enforcement defense.
Prior to joining the firm, Vickie served as a clerk for the Honorable James L. Foreman, District Judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois. In 1997, she also served as a clerk for the United States Attorney’s Office.
Vickie is the Chair of the Firm’s Health Care section and leads the firm’s Privacy & Data Protection group. She has spoken to numerous industry groups such as the American Hospital Association and the Health Care Compliance Association on the topic of privacy and security for healthcare providers, insurers and employers. She has been listed in Chambers USA, America’s Leading Lawyers for Business (© 2013). Since 2007, Vickie has been selected by her peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® in the field of Health Care Law and was named Best Lawyers’ Omaha Healthcare Lawyer of the Year for 2013 and 2020.
Areas of Practice
Education
- Southern Illinois University School of Law, J.D., 1998
- University of Nebraska at Kearney, B.A., English, 1994
Professional & Civic Affiliations
- Nebraska Organ and Tissue Donor Coalition Board of Directors, Chairperson
- American Health Lawyers Association, Health Information Technology Leadership Committee Practice Group
- Nebraska Chapter of Healthcare Financial Management Association, Past President
- Iowa Society of Healthcare Attorneys, President-Elect
- Prior Activities include Latino Center of the Midlands Board of Directors, Nebraska Aids Project Board of Directors, Friends of Planned Parenthood Board and Leadership Omaha (Class 26)
- Wellness Council of the Midlands Board of Directors, Past President
Bar & Court Admissions
- Iowa, 2005
- Nebraska, 1998
- Wisconsin, 2019
Selected Practice Highlights
- Assisting client through a HIPAA Performance Audit in the pilot phase of Performance Audits conducted by KPMG on behalf of the Office for Civil Rights (OCR)
- Representing numerous clients in HIPAA complaints filed with OCR and data breach investigations by OCR, including mandatory investigation following a breach of over 500 records requiring media and government notice
- Developing compliant policies and processes for privacy and security and training and consultation for workforce and Medical Staff on HIPAA compliance
- Assisting large national employers through multi-state breach notification under various state laws
- Representing clients in developing medical staff bylaws, rules and regulations and policies
- Successfully obtaining FDA 510(k) clearance on behalf of client for three medical devices
- Advising clients with respect to physician recruitment and employment and other hospital-physician relationship issues
- Co-authoring four compliance publications for health care providers and health plans on compliance with HIPAA and HITECH
Recent Speaking Engagements
- “Intersection of Public Health and Healthcare: Healthcare Data and the Law in the 21st Century. Part 1: Collecting Data: Electronic Health Records and the Law.” Co-sponsored by the CDC’s Public Health Law Program and the American Health Lawyers Association, June 21, 2017
- “Managing the Data Breach,” Creighton University School of Law, March 13, 2017
- “The Escalating Impact of HIPAA,” Iowa Hospital Association, October 18, 2016
- “A Tale of Snooping: Lessons Learned the Hard Way,” Nebraska Rural Health Association, September 21, 2016
- “Managing the Data Breach,” Creighton University School of Law, February 29, 2016
- “Managing the Data Breach,” Creighton University School of Law, February 23, 2015
- “The Need for CAH-tion for Critical Access Hospitals and Rural Health Clinics” (with Barbara E. Person), Nebraska Hospital Association Mid-Year Meeting, May 22, 2014
- “Legal Implications of a Breach in the Cloud” (with James E. O’Connor), Infotec 2014, April 14, 2014
- “The Next Decade of HIPAA: Understanding and Implementing the Omnibus Final Rule,” NAHAM Spring Conference, April 3, 2014
- “Supervision of Outpatient Therapeutic Services,” Nebraska Hospital Association Webinar, February 13, 2014
- “HIPAA Beginning Steps & Common Misperceptions” (with Michael W. Chase), LeadingAge Webinar Compliance Series, February 12, 2014
- “Scary situations: Protecting Your Hospital From Violent Patients, Employees or Visitors” (with Heidi Guttau-Fox), Iowa Hospital Association Annual Meeting, October 9, 2013
- “HIPAA Performance Audits: Inside Perspective,” The Healthcare Roundtable for General Counsel, September 9, 2013
- “Using Hospital Data in the Next Decade of HIPAA,” MidAmerican Information Summit, Iowa Hospital Association, September 5, 2013
- “Scary Situations Protecting Your Hospital from Violent Patients, Employees, or Visitors,” (with Heidi Guttau-Fox), Nebraska Hospital Association Mid-Year Meeting, May 23, 2013
- “The Next Decade of HIPAA: Understanding and Implementing the Omnibus Final Rule,” Nebraska HIMSS Spring Meeting, May 21, 2013
- “The Next Decade of HIPAA: Understanding and Implementing the Omnibus Final Rule,” ISHA Spring Conference, May 14, 2013
- “The Next Decade of HIPAA: Omnibus Final Rule and Enforcement”, IMGMA Spring Conference, May 9, 2013
- “Managing the Data Breach,” Creighton University School of Law, May 4, 2013
- “iNeed my Device – Issues and Challenges Facing Health Care Providers in Today’s Mobile World,” co-presented with James E. O’Connor, Baird Holm Health Law Forum, November 16, 2012
- “Data Risk and Crisis Management: Are You Prepared?” co-presented with James E. O’Connor, Baird Holm CLE Program, September 19, 2012
- “Data Risk and Crisis Management: Are You Prepared?” co-presented with James E. O’Connor, Baird Holm ACC Presentation, February 8, 2012
- “Medicare and Medicaid Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) Program,” Nebraska Rural Health Association Rural Health Clinic Billing & Coding Workshop, September 21, 2011
- “Breach Notification from the Inside – Lessons Learned,” Iowa Society of Healthcare Attorneys Health Law Conference, May 17, 2011
- “HITECH Impact on Business Associate Relationships,” Iowa Medical Group Management Spring Conference, May 13, 2011
- “Breach Notification From The Inside – Lessons Learned,” The Healthcare Roundtable for General Counsel, March 15, 2011
- “Alphabet Soup: Deciphering RACs, MICs and ZPICs,” Iowa Hospital Association, October 7, 2010
In the News
Covid-19 Information Hub
- Cares Act And Interim Final Rules–continued Focus On Telehealth To Relieve Burdens On Providers
- Interim Final Rule Expected in October to Mandate Vaccines in Most Health Care Settings
- CMS Issues Sweeping Vaccine Mandate for Health Care Providers
- Missouri Court Halts CMS Vaccine Mandate for Healthcare Workers in 10 States
- CMS Vaccine Mandate Update: Eighth Circuit Refuses Reinstatement of Vaccine Mandate for Healthcare Workers
- Supreme Court Lifts Injunction Against CMS Vaccine Mandate
Health Law Alert
Areas of Practice
Education
- Southern Illinois University School of Law, J.D., 1998
- University of Nebraska at Kearney, B.A., English, 1994
Bar & Court Admissions
- Iowa, 2005
- Nebraska, 1998
- Wisconsin, 2019
Profile
Vickie B. Ahlers represents health care clients with respect to a variety of issues including regulatory, transactional and contracting issues, HIPAA, medical staff and allied health professionals issues, organizational compliance, and compliance with FDA medical device regulations. Vickie also focuses her practice on privacy and data protection issues for businesses across all industry sectors. She has handled more than 300 breach analyses and response efforts, ranging from preparation and evaluation of privacy & data protection processes, incident evaluation & response, and regulatory enforcement defense.
Prior to joining the firm, Vickie served as a clerk for the Honorable James L. Foreman, District Judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois. In 1997, she also served as a clerk for the United States Attorney’s Office.
Vickie is the Chair of the Firm’s Health Care section and leads the firm’s Privacy & Data Protection group. She has spoken to numerous industry groups such as the American Hospital Association and the Health Care Compliance Association on the topic of privacy and security for healthcare providers, insurers and employers. She has been listed in Chambers USA, America’s Leading Lawyers for Business (© 2013). Since 2007, Vickie has been selected by her peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® in the field of Health Care Law and was named Best Lawyers’ Omaha Healthcare Lawyer of the Year for 2013 and 2020.
Professional & Civic Affiliations
- Nebraska Organ and Tissue Donor Coalition Board of Directors, Chairperson
- American Health Lawyers Association, Health Information Technology Leadership Committee Practice Group
- Nebraska Chapter of Healthcare Financial Management Association, Past President
- Iowa Society of Healthcare Attorneys, President-Elect
- Prior Activities include Latino Center of the Midlands Board of Directors, Nebraska Aids Project Board of Directors, Friends of Planned Parenthood Board and Leadership Omaha (Class 26)
- Wellness Council of the Midlands Board of Directors, Past President
Selected Practice Highlights
- Assisting client through a HIPAA Performance Audit in the pilot phase of Performance Audits conducted by KPMG on behalf of the Office for Civil Rights (OCR)
- Representing numerous clients in HIPAA complaints filed with OCR and data breach investigations by OCR, including mandatory investigation following a breach of over 500 records requiring media and government notice
- Developing compliant policies and processes for privacy and security and training and consultation for workforce and Medical Staff on HIPAA compliance
- Assisting large national employers through multi-state breach notification under various state laws
- Representing clients in developing medical staff bylaws, rules and regulations and policies
- Successfully obtaining FDA 510(k) clearance on behalf of client for three medical devices
- Advising clients with respect to physician recruitment and employment and other hospital-physician relationship issues
- Co-authoring four compliance publications for health care providers and health plans on compliance with HIPAA and HITECH
Recent Speaking Engagements
- “Intersection of Public Health and Healthcare: Healthcare Data and the Law in the 21st Century. Part 1: Collecting Data: Electronic Health Records and the Law.” Co-sponsored by the CDC’s Public Health Law Program and the American Health Lawyers Association, June 21, 2017
- “Managing the Data Breach,” Creighton University School of Law, March 13, 2017
- “The Escalating Impact of HIPAA,” Iowa Hospital Association, October 18, 2016
- “A Tale of Snooping: Lessons Learned the Hard Way,” Nebraska Rural Health Association, September 21, 2016
- “Managing the Data Breach,” Creighton University School of Law, February 29, 2016
- “Managing the Data Breach,” Creighton University School of Law, February 23, 2015
- “The Need for CAH-tion for Critical Access Hospitals and Rural Health Clinics” (with Barbara E. Person), Nebraska Hospital Association Mid-Year Meeting, May 22, 2014
- “Legal Implications of a Breach in the Cloud” (with James E. O’Connor), Infotec 2014, April 14, 2014
- “The Next Decade of HIPAA: Understanding and Implementing the Omnibus Final Rule,” NAHAM Spring Conference, April 3, 2014
- “Supervision of Outpatient Therapeutic Services,” Nebraska Hospital Association Webinar, February 13, 2014
- “HIPAA Beginning Steps & Common Misperceptions” (with Michael W. Chase), LeadingAge Webinar Compliance Series, February 12, 2014
- “Scary situations: Protecting Your Hospital From Violent Patients, Employees or Visitors” (with Heidi Guttau-Fox), Iowa Hospital Association Annual Meeting, October 9, 2013
- “HIPAA Performance Audits: Inside Perspective,” The Healthcare Roundtable for General Counsel, September 9, 2013
- “Using Hospital Data in the Next Decade of HIPAA,” MidAmerican Information Summit, Iowa Hospital Association, September 5, 2013
- “Scary Situations Protecting Your Hospital from Violent Patients, Employees, or Visitors,” (with Heidi Guttau-Fox), Nebraska Hospital Association Mid-Year Meeting, May 23, 2013
- “The Next Decade of HIPAA: Understanding and Implementing the Omnibus Final Rule,” Nebraska HIMSS Spring Meeting, May 21, 2013
- “The Next Decade of HIPAA: Understanding and Implementing the Omnibus Final Rule,” ISHA Spring Conference, May 14, 2013
- “The Next Decade of HIPAA: Omnibus Final Rule and Enforcement”, IMGMA Spring Conference, May 9, 2013
- “Managing the Data Breach,” Creighton University School of Law, May 4, 2013
- “iNeed my Device – Issues and Challenges Facing Health Care Providers in Today’s Mobile World,” co-presented with James E. O’Connor, Baird Holm Health Law Forum, November 16, 2012
- “Data Risk and Crisis Management: Are You Prepared?” co-presented with James E. O’Connor, Baird Holm CLE Program, September 19, 2012
- “Data Risk and Crisis Management: Are You Prepared?” co-presented with James E. O’Connor, Baird Holm ACC Presentation, February 8, 2012
- “Medicare and Medicaid Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) Program,” Nebraska Rural Health Association Rural Health Clinic Billing & Coding Workshop, September 21, 2011
- “Breach Notification from the Inside – Lessons Learned,” Iowa Society of Healthcare Attorneys Health Law Conference, May 17, 2011
- “HITECH Impact on Business Associate Relationships,” Iowa Medical Group Management Spring Conference, May 13, 2011
- “Breach Notification From The Inside – Lessons Learned,” The Healthcare Roundtable for General Counsel, March 15, 2011
- “Alphabet Soup: Deciphering RACs, MICs and ZPICs,” Iowa Hospital Association, October 7, 2010
Covid-19 Information Hub
- Cares Act And Interim Final Rules–continued Focus On Telehealth To Relieve Burdens On Providers
- Interim Final Rule Expected in October to Mandate Vaccines in Most Health Care Settings
- CMS Issues Sweeping Vaccine Mandate for Health Care Providers
- Missouri Court Halts CMS Vaccine Mandate for Healthcare Workers in 10 States
- CMS Vaccine Mandate Update: Eighth Circuit Refuses Reinstatement of Vaccine Mandate for Healthcare Workers
- Supreme Court Lifts Injunction Against CMS Vaccine Mandate