Government
Penalty for breaking HIPAA law
■ An occasional snapshot of current facts and trends in medicine.
Quick View. Posted Sept. 20, 2004
Willful and deliberate violations of the federal medical records privacy rule carry stiff criminal penalties.
Last month's conviction of Richard W. Gibson of SeaTac, Wash. -- the first in the country involving a breach of the privacy portion of the HIPAA act -- is a reminder of that fact. The regulation, part of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, went into effect in April of last year. Gibson admitted that, while he worked at Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, he used a patient's personal information to get four credit cards on which he charged more than $9,000.
Source: URAC