The following is a public service announcement from HHS: Thousands of Texans sheltering at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston will have medical care on-site through a 250-bed Federal Medical Station established by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) at the request of the State Department of Health. The Federal…
Category: Healthcare
Improper HIPAA Disclosure Results in Termination and Legal Dispute
Cynthia A. Bremer & David McKinney of Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. write: The Kentucky Court of Appeals recently held that a hospital acted lawfully in terminating the employment of a nurse for violating the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). The nurse had been within earshot of other patients…
How private are your prescription records?
Leslie Francis and John Francis write: Urgent public health crises generate pressures for access to information to protect the public’s health. Identifying patients with contagious conditions and tracing their contacts may seem imperative for serious diseases such as Ebola or SARS. But pressures for information reach far more broadly than the threat of deadly contagion….
Pa. Nurse Admits He Filmed Female Patients — Including Teen Girl — While They Were Undressed
James Close reported this a few weeks ago: A Pennsylvania nurse last week admitted to secretly filming multiple female patients, including a teenage girl, while they were undressed and in his care, PEOPLE confirms. James Close, 45, pleaded guilty on Friday in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, to all 48 criminal counts against him — among them…