When your company is caught violating HIPAA, it can cause a lot of problems.
Here’s how to prevent your company from violating the law in the future.
1.
Know your HIPAA RightsAs a HIPA employer, you have the right to refuse medical care based on your religious beliefs, if you think it would harm your company.
In fact, many companies don’t like to share their HIPAA policies with anyone other than HR or other employees.
2.
Be Sure to Write Down Your HIPAA InformationIf you have to sign a HIPPA waiver, keep it as a record, not a file.
This makes it easy for people to look up who signed the waiver, and if someone comes to you with an objection, they can easily prove it.
If your company uses a HIPSA waiver, make sure to include all of the information that the company asks for.
For example, the following HIPAA waiver is from your company’s healthcare benefits administrator.
Do not delete or remove any parts of this information.
You must keep it on file.
3.
Contact the HR departmentIf you’ve got a problem with your company, you might need to contact HR.
For some employers, they may ask you to give them your company policy or the HIPAA agreement.
It’s a good idea to write down your contact information, so that you can contact them if you need to.
If you’re an HR employee, it’s a great idea to email the HR manager at the HR office.
This will give the HR person time to investigate your complaint and come to a decision.
It might also give you a chance to explain why your company doesn’t adhere to HIPAA.
You can even get the HR staff to sign the waiver as well.
4.
Contact HRIf your company refuses to comply with HIPAA and your company goes bankrupt, you may be able to claim a form of damages from the company, like lost wages and severance pay.
If so, you should consider filing a claim with the state insurance commissioner, as well as with the federal government.
5.
Ask your HR for an explanationYour HR representative should have your written statement on hand.
If they can’t find your written agreement, they should send you a letter explaining why.
This should be in the form of a letter from your HR department or a letter signed by the employee.
6.
Find a HIPAC OfficerYour HR department should provide you with the HIPAC officer you want to contact.
The HR department will want to know how the organization is enforcing HIPAA laws, as the HR personnel could be responsible for compliance violations.
The HIPAC officers will also want to understand your company policies, which will help them understand how your company could be violating the HIPPA.
7.
File a complaint with the Federal Trade CommissionIf you think your company has broken HIPAA by failing to adhere to its HIPAA policy, you can file a complaint to the FTC.
The FTC is an independent agency that investigates complaints about consumer and business matters.
You should contact the FTC’s website for more information.
8.
Contact your HR and/or state insurance departmentsThe HR department at your company can be the most important step in your investigation.
They can be a great resource if they know your company compliance issues and can help you identify potential violations.
If it’s your HR office, you could ask them to investigate the situation.
The state insurance department may be your best source.
9.
Contact other HR professionalsYour HR and state insurance offices should be your last line of defense if you are being investigated for HIPAA violations.
Contact these employees to discuss the complaint, which may help you obtain a court order to force compliance.
If the HR and the state insurers are not cooperating, you’ll need to take your case to federal court.