by Charles Ornstein ProPublica, July 21, 2016, 8 a.m. When the federal government takes the rare step of fining medical providers for violating the privacy and security of patients’ medical information, it issues a press release and posts details on the web. But thousands of times a year, the Office for Civil Rights of the…
Category: Healthcare
Boston Hospital Warns Staff of Privacy Violations with Pokémon Go
Steven Andrews reports: Pokémon Go, the most popular mobile game app ever in the U.S., has captured the attention of players of all ages. But it could also be capturing sensitive images and information in hospitals, which could lead to a violation of HIPAA privacy rules. Employees at Massachusetts General Hospital received an email yesterday reminding them…
Oregon psych board punishes UO counseling center director for releasing student’s records
Diane Dietz reports on some of the aftermath of a breach that made national news and led to revision of Oregon laws: The state psychology regulatory board voted Friday to punish Shelly Kerr, director of the University of Oregon counseling center, for giving a student’s therapy records to university lawyers without the student’s consent. Kerr, a…
Ca: PEI government under fire over alleged sharing of photo of dead home-care resident
The Canadian Press reports: The P.E.I. government is under fire for its handling of a privacy breach in which photos taken of residents of a long term care home were shared on social media. A CBC report says one photo shared on Snapchat in the spring of 2015 was a head shot of a deceased…