Employers, Employees, & HIPAA, Oh My! – Healthcare & More News Here

Oftentimes, healthcare entities’ staff are additionally
sufferers of the healthcare entity, making a twin position as employer
and worker in addition to physician and affected person. But what can an
employer do when they should entry an worker’s medical
information? Are these medical information handled in another way than
non-worker sufferers? Throughout the previous few years, now we have seen
an growing variety of healthcare entities with these precise
questions.

Pursuant to 65 FR 82612, HIPAA doesn’t apply
to employment  information held by a healthcare
entity. However, “[i]ndividually identifiable well being
data maintained or transmitted by a lined entity in its
well being care capability [will] proceed to be handled as protected
well being data” below HIPAA. (67 FR 53191). In reality,
“identifiable well being data the healthcare entity holds
as a lined well being care supplier . . . is protected well being
data and customarily will not be shared with the employer for
employment functions with out the person’s
authorization.” 78 FR 5589. Therefore, HIPAA does classify a
distinction between employment information and worker’s medical
information.

There are a number of examples of how you can distinguish between
employment information and worker’s medical information that
include protected well being data: “drug screening take a look at
outcomes shall be protected well being data when the supplier
administers the take a look at to the worker, however is not going to be protected
well being data when, pursuant to the worker’s
authorization, the take a look at outcomes are offered to the supplier appearing
as employer and positioned within the worker’s employment report.
Similarly, the outcomes of a health for obligation examination shall be protected
well being data when the supplier administers the take a look at to considered one of
its staff, however is not going to be protected well being data when
the outcomes of the health for obligation examination are turned over to the
supplier as employer pursuant to the worker’s
authorization.” 67 FR 53192.

If the information a healthcare entity must receive are medical
information of their worker, then HIPAA exceptions would apply simply
as they might to some other non-worker affected person. The principal exception
we see on this twin position state of affairs is {that a} lined entity is
permitted to make use of or disclose protected well being data for
therapy, fee, or well being care operations, as permitted by and
in compliance with 164.506. (The “Healthcare Operations
Exception”). 45 CFR 164.502(a)(1)(ii).

The Healthcare Operations Exception consists of a number of permitted
actions, however essentially the most generally utilized actions for
healthcare entities within the twin position of employer and supplier
embrace: conducting high quality evaluation and enchancment actions;
reviewing the competence or {qualifications} of well being care
professionals; and conducting or arranging for medical evaluate,
authorized providers, and auditing features, together with fraud and abuse
detection and compliance applications. 45 CFR 164.501.

The caveat is that “when utilizing or disclosing protected
well being data . . . a lined entity should make cheap
efforts to restrict protected well being data to the minimal
essential to perform the supposed goal of the use,
disclosure, or request.” 45 CFR 164.502(b). As such, if the
healthcare entity does have to look into an worker’s
medical report below the Healthcare Operations Exception, they need to
accomplish that for an especially restricted goal.

The content material of this text is meant to offer a common
information to the subject material. Specialist recommendation ought to be sought
about your particular circumstances.

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