Over the past several years, the health care industry has seen rapid adoption of electronic health record (EHR) technology by health care providers and facilities. Recent adoption of EHR technology was spurred by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) EHR Incentive Program (also known as Meaningful Use). Under […]
Health Law Alert
HHS Announces Proposed Rule Amending the HIPAA Privacy Rule for Reporting to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System
On January 3, 2014, the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to revise the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Privacy Rule to expressly permit certain covered entities to disclose specific information about individuals subject to the Federal mental […]
Court Ruling Includes Important Reminders on Attorney-Client Privilege
Many providers wrongly assume that copying their lawyer on communications somehow means that the communication is automatically protected from discovery under an attorney-client privilege. A recent ruling in U.S. v. Halifax Hospital Medical Center points out that this is not always the case and includes important reminders for what is […]
OIG Advisory Opinion Provides Additional Guidance on Supplier’s/Provider’s “Usual” Charges
Much confusion surrounds the issue of whether or not a Medicare supplier or provider may charge individuals or payors other than Federal health care programs less than its usual charges. A recent OIG Advisory Opinion (AO 13-13) addresses free services offered to uninsured patients. Section 1128(b)(6)(A) of the Social […]
Update: EHR Donation Sunset Extended
At long last, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved final rules extending the sunset on the Stark exception and an Anti-Kickback safe harbor. As addressed previously in this Health Law Advisory article, both the exception and the safe harbor were scheduled to sunset on December 31, 2013. This […]