It never ceases to amaze me that hospitals and providers will deprive families and loved ones of information while a patient is in a life or death crisis, but will dump the most intimate details about a patient and their PHI to the press or internet on the slightest criticism or lawsuit. CMS is apparently … Read more
The TRACIE Team has developed a “working draft” resource document for emergency planners facing response and recovery from a major hurricane impact with flooding and significant damage. [Visible link: https://content.govdelivery.com/attachments/USDHSCIKR/2017/09/10/file_attachments/877262/ASPR%2BTRACIE%2BMajor%2BHurricanes-%2BPotential%2BConsiderations%2BWorking%2BDraft.10Sep2017.pdf] The document was developed based on lessons learned and experience gained from past hurricane responses and provides potential considerations in four categories, based … Read more
“Cyber criminals have stolen 143 million credit records in the recent hacking scandal at big-three credit bureau Equifax. At this point you have to assume that the bad guys have highly personal information that they can use to trick you. You need to watch out for the following things: Phishing emails that claim to be … Read more
While actual storm tracks can vary considerably from projections, the severity of Irma suggests that risk managers and hospital personnel in the South Eastern US should be preparing hospitals and their own homes for damages as bad as Houston—or worse. Consideration should be given to an orderly evacuation of unnecessary personnel in advance of a … Read more
September 1, 2017: West Bend Insurance is warning businesses, clinics, and hospitals to check their insurance before sending employees or staff into dangerous situations like hurricane relief in Texas. This applies not only to currently, but over the years of clean-up to follow. West Bend states: In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, service providers, particularly … Read more
Information on volunteer medical providers for the Texas disaster is available at https://www.texasdisastervolunteerregistry.org
“Heads-up! The IRS is warning against a new phishing scam that tries to make you download an FBI questionnaire. But if you click the link, your computer will be infected with ransomware instead. The scam email uses the emblems of both the IRS and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Remember that the IRS does not … Read more
President Trump has signed disaster declarations for Texas and Louisiana. Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price signed a public health emergency declaration for Texas and Louisiana, authorizing the use of Section 1135 waivers of certain Medicare and Medicaid regulations. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is coordinating the requests and approvals to use … Read more
With the largest EMTALA fine (civil monetary penalty) in the history of the 1986 law, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) has fired what appears to be a massive warning shot across the bow of hospital emergency departments across the country. On June 23, 2017, AnMed Health in Anderson, S.C. entered into a $1,295,000 … Read more
Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, August 2, 2017 Attorney General Jeff Sessions today announced the formation of the Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit, a new Department of Justice pilot program to utilize data to help combat the devastating opioid crisis that is ravaging families and communities across America. … Read more