HIPAA Compliance Training & Policies for Anesthesia

Has your organization considered Anesthesia Compliance & HIPAA Training to meet the requirements of the Office of Inspector General (OIG) and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR)?

Have you recently updated your HIPAA Privacy and Security policies and procedures? Have you trained your staff on the latest federal regulations that might affect your billing for anesthesia? Is your staff trained on the HIPAA Privacy Rule and how it affects your organization?

We have a solution for your anesthesia company through the following services:

• Anesthesia compliance training
• HIPAA privacy training
• HIPAA policy templates

Our training courses are made to assist all anesthesiologist-led and CRNA-driven programs.

Anesthesia Compliance Consultants has the HIPAA policies and expertise to help you start or improve your HIPAA compliance plan.

Let us help with your Anesthesia Compliance and HIPAA training today.

All covered entity organizations and business associates that handle protected health information (PHI) must follow the HIPAA Privacy Rule. HIPAA Policies and Procedures are vital features of any plan that addresses HIPAA compliance and conforms to the Privacy Rule.  We will assist you in creating a HIPAA compliance plan that meets all the requirements.  This plan protects PHI and give individuals rights over their PHI and describe the responsibilities of covered entities.

In order to protect PHI, the HIPAA Policies implement appropriate Administrative, Technical, and Physical Safeguards to protect the privacy and security of PHI.

In addition, before you modify or create HIPAA policies, consider that privacy laws vary from state by state. It is important you obtain expert advice from a HIPAA professional such as HIPAA Associates when creating your HIPAA Policies & Procedures to include the appropriate state regulations

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) has given clear direction in the publication, Compliance Program Guidance for Individual and Small Group Physician Practices, on establishing a voluntary compliance plan. The intent of this initiative was to assist in preventing submission of erroneous claims or engaging in unlawful conduct involving the federal health care programs. By developing these compliance plans health care providers can use internal controls to better monitor the adherence to applicable statutes, regulations and program requirements.

The Federal Sentencing Guidelines explicitly reward the adoption of an effective compliance program by reducing the imposed sanctions. For years the Office of Inspector General (OIG) has encouraged providers to implement compliance programs. They have also indicated providers who lack programs risk more severe sanctions if penalties are given.

To fully comply with the HIPAA Privacy Rule, every health care organization must address HIPAA Compliance Training for all members of their staff as it applies to their position in your organization.

If you handle protected health information (PHI) you must develop and maintain a HIPAA Compliance Plan which consists of HIPAA policies and procedures.

The National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association reports that financial losses due to fraud can be as much as ten billion dollars. The U.S. HHS and OIG recovered $5.9 billion related to healthcare fraud in 2019.

The Privacy Rule established standards for the protection of health information. The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued the Privacy Rule to implement the requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The Privacy Rule establishes standards for individuals’ privacy rights to help them control the use of their health information. One of the goals of the Privacy Rule is to assure proper protection of individuals’ health information while allowing the necessary flow of health information to provide and promote health care and to safeguard health and well-being.  All anesthesia providers must be aware of the HIPAA Privacy Rule.

Initially HHS-OIG published voluntary compliance guidance for individual and small group healthcare practices. Section 6401 of the ACA stipulated that healthcare providers must establish compliance programs as a condition of participation in Medicare, Medicaid and/or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Insurance companies today require or recommend that medical providers develop a compliance program for the protection of the organization.

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has mandated physicians and group practices to establish compliance programs if they want to provide services under Medicare, Medicaid and Children?s Health Insurance Program.

Commercial insurers are also requiring medical providers to create a compliance plan as a condition of participation in their pro-gram. Those who do not create a plan are at risk of not being allowed to participate in the healthcare program.

CMS insists that medical providers will be able to protect themselves from improper conduct if they create a compliance program. A functional program ensures that government rules are enforced and that they provide quality care. A good compliance program will help prevent criminal behavior, protect against fraud, improper payments, abuse of the system and other liabilities.

The ACA recommends that healthcare providers implement a compliance plan, if they haven’t yet, that includes the seven core elements as a foundation for their program.

• Establish and adopt written policies and procedures to promote the provider’s commitment to compliance. Include sanction screenings as part of the healthcare compliance plan. Ensure that there’s a routine process in place to monitor potential compliance issues.

• Identify and appoint an individual to serve as the compliance officer and charge this person with the responsibility for monitoring compliance efforts and enforcing practicing standards.

• Establish reporting systems whereby individuals can report complaints about compliance items without fear of retaliation. Some providers have found it to be helpful to set up an anonymous hotline number.

• Make a commitment to offering formal education and training programs at all levels of employment. Make it part of the employee orientation process.

• Continually audit and monitor systems to ensure that they are effective and to head off potential problems.

• Develop policies to enforce the standards of conduct and establish disciplinary measures for employees who don?t comply with the requirements.

• Take corrective action when vulnerabilities are identified.

Anesthesia Compliance Consultants (ACC) have been in the business of HIPAA consulting since the Privacy Rule went into effect. We have assisted many large organizations in developing their HIPAA Privacy programs. Our professionals are prepared to assist you with all these important policies and procedures. ACC develops and consults on HIPAA compliance plans that include HI-PAA privacy and security, policies and procedures and breach reporting requirements in compliance with the HIPAA Rules. Of great importance, ACC is always available to assist you when questions arise regarding the HIPAA Rule. We would be happy to discuss with you how we can help with your program.

“We understand anesthesia: we have stood in your shoes.”