Health Care Newsletters

Certificates of Need

Certificate of need programs are regulatory processes that assign the responsibility of addressing access, quality, and cost issues related to healthcare delivery to state reviewers. In states that have certificate of need programs, hospitals and health care providers cannot open, expand or add services without complying with the state's certificate of need program requirements.

COVERED ENTITY WORKFORCE TRAINING REQUIREMENTS

The Privacy Rule, promulgated by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to comply with and enforce the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), is designed to protect an individual's privacy in his or her health information to the greatest extent possible.

COMPLIANCE WITH NOTICE REQUIREMENTS

An entity that is covered under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) must document that it has complied with requirements regarding notice of privacy practices relative to an individual's protected health information.

The Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002 and Food Safety

Title III of the Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002 establishes procedures to ensure the safety of the U.S. food supply from terrorist attacks.

HIPAA and Sharing Patient Information with a Patient's Family

The Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act of 1996 prohibits healthcare providers from disclosing patients' protected health information to third parties without their written consent. The patient's written authorization is not required to make disclosures to notify, identify, or locate the patient's family members in emergency situations, but only generalized information about the patient's condition can be shared in such situations.