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GOVERNMENT & MEDICINEDeadline is now for federal HIPAA regulations: Confusing debut for privacy rulePhysician practices are supposed to be following federal standards for patient privacy, but experts warn them not to go overboard.By Joel B. Finkelstein, AMNews staff. April 14, 2003. Washington -- The national privacy regulations have finally gone into effect, but for many physicians, the real trials and tribulations of the rule have only just begun. While physicians continue to scramble to meet the requirements of the privacy rule, experts worry that the regulations may unintentionally interrupt the flow of patient data within the medical community. A lack of accurate information about the privacy standards is creating a potentially dangerous environment of overprotective practices. There is still much confusion about the rule, and that confusion may very well stifle or slow information sharing, said Mark A. Rothstein, director of the Institute for Bioethics, Health Policy and Law at Kentucky's University of Louisville. Exaggerations and misinformation from those attempting to profit from physicians' confusion are also proving to be a problem. "A lot of providers think they have to get an authorization to write a prescription or need authorization to get hospital records," said Antonio W. Felices, RN, a HIPAA consultant with the Practice Management Institute in San Antonio. "I have even spoken with physicians who are reluctant to release records to other physicians because they think it's a violation of HIPAA." Physicians and public health workers are already experiencing difficulty obtaining patient health information that used to be no problem to get. "There is confusion about what physicians can and cannot report," said Rothstein. [...]
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Copyright 2003 American Medical Association. All rights reserved.
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