Middletown-based Seacrest DocSecurity, which offers HIPAA compliance solutions, recently announced the results of an exclusive survey of more than 500 doctors. This national survey, administered by Seacrest DocSecurity, shows that many doctors’ offices are not compliant with the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), meaning patient records are not secure and health care organizations and practitioners themselves are open to federal fines and civil litigation.
The survey results show that nearly 36.2 percent of the doctors surveyed think that just because they have been through privacy training that they are HIPAA compliant and this is not the case. Less than half of the doctors surveyed perform background checks on their employees, 39.5 percent do not secure electronic data transmissions, 12.5 percent will not be compliant with the Oct. 16 mandated deadline and 27 percent still do not keep fax machines in a locked location. Maintaining security over confidential patient information is a key component of HIPAA. The full results of the survey are available for download at www.seacrestdocsecurity.com.
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“One of the reasons for a lag in HIPAA compliance is the complicated nature of the legislation, and the amount of technology and training needed for health care organizations of all sizes to become compliant. What health care practitioners don’t realize is that they can be individually targeted for civil lawsuits if they are not HIPAA compliant,” said Dr. Arnold S. Rosenbaum, CEO and medical director of Seacrest DocSecurity.
Seacrest DocSecurity provides a bundled package of technology products and services for achieving compliance with regulations required by HIPAA. A three phase process that includes evaluation, compliance and certification, Seacrest DocSecurity’s program was conceptualized and implemented by Rosenbaum, a practicing surgeon and clinical assistant professor in surgery at Brown University Medical School. Rosenbaum’s vision evolved out of his own frustrations while he was trying to make his own practice HIPAA compliant.
Seacrest DocSecurity is the only company to offer eligibility for insurance against civil HIPAA litigation.
