Keep it Real:
How to Avoid HIPAA Marketing Scams
By Olivia Wann, JD

Has your dental office received a phone call stating the following: “My name is XX. I’m calling your office today to conduct your mandatory HIPAA Security Risk Assessment that’s required by the Department of Health and Human Services…”

We have received a number of support calls from dental offices regarding the Section 1557 compliance. If you accept Medicaid, Medicare Advantage and/or received funding under the HITECH Act, please read this letter carefully.

Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act protects individuals from discrimination in health care based on race, color, national origin, age, disability and sex including pregnancy, gender identity, and sex stereotyping.

A critical component of a dental office’s HIPAA compliance program is obtaining business associate agreements from their business associates. A business associate is a person or an entity that provides services for the covered entity (dental office) involving protected health information (PHI) and electronic protected health information (ePHI).

Examples of business associates include electronic claims vendors, information technicians (IT), practice management software companies, appointment confirmation companies, marketing companies, trainers, consultants, bookkeepers, accountants, lawyers and others.

Modern Practice Solutions, LLC is receiving numerous calls regarding disposal of pharmaceutical waste, particularly dental anesthetic carpules. The American Dental Association recently published an article, “Stericycle Contracts: Read the Fine Print – Dentists Question Business Practices,” in the ADA News June 20, 2016 edition. Dentists are looking for affordable options for waste disposal rather than being bound to expensive contracts.

The dilemma of whether an employee is salary or hourly continues to perplex employers.  Perhaps you have classified your office manager as salary exempt meaning no compensation for overtime because he or she is serving in a managerial capacity.  Maybe the hygienist was also classified as exempt “salary.” The hygienist on a daily rate never had to track hours worked and was paid a daily rate whether they worked 8-hours a day 4-days a week or the occasional 6-days a week.

It seems like a handheld X-ray unit is the way to go . . . is it?

Maybe yes . . . probably no

By Kevin Christian, LLC

As consultants in the dental OSHA and infection control compliance world, we are keenly interested in the promotion of safe dental care and a safe working environment.

There has been documented transmissions of infectious agents including patient-to-patient in dental settings between the years 2003 and 2015.  According to CDC, there have been reported breakdowns in basic infection prevention procedures including unsafe injection practices, failure to heat sterilize dental handpieces between patients, and failure to monitor autoclaves.

Navigating the myriad of regulations that govern a dental office can be daunting.  And the last thing anything wants is to be out of compliance without even knowing it.  My name is Kevin Christian, and I am the TDA endorsed private X-ray inspector in the State of Tennessee.  I want to take a second to help you avoid some of the common pitfalls that dentists often fall into when purchasing X-ray equipment.

As we move into the new year and implement our goals for our practices, don’t forget OSHA’s new requirements.

OSHA updated the requirements for labeling of hazardous chemicals under its Hazard Communication Standard. As of June 1, 2015, all labels will be required to have pictograms, a signal word, hazard and precautionary statements, the product identifier, and supplier identification.  Please see the picture provided.

Everything is bigger in Texas….even their version of HIPAA regarding medical records privacy.
Texas Legislature adopted House Bill 300 known as HB 300 effective September 2012 which amended the Texas Medical Records Privacy Act. HB 300 significantly expanded patient privacy protections compared to the federal counterpart outlined in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 known as HIPAA.

OSHA Unveils Its New Online Resource for Hospitals and Health
Care Entities

Learn more visit here:  https://www.osha.gov/dsg/hospitals/index.html

How Lawyers Who Serve As Business Associates to Covered Entities Align their Law Practices with HIPAA

HIPAA is certainly not new. Hospitals, medical and dental practices, and other covered entities have been grappling with HIPAA for years now. Ask any healthcare worker about the topic and likely you will receive negative feedback.   No doubt such a response relates to the ongoing challenges of HIPAA compliance which includes ongoing training, voluminous policies and procedures, never ending documentation, complicated risk assessments and convoluted risk management plans.

The woes of HIPAA compliance….

HIPAA requires a thorough and accurate risk assessment of your data’s security.  As HIPAA consultants, we collaborate with your Practice Administrator and your IT professionals to answer questions such as:

It’s that time of year when meeting planners are planning content and speakers for dental societies, seminars, state meetings and workshops.

Modern Practice Solutions is pleased to offer a new course:  The CASH Course.  This class is designed to inspire you and your team members to “unflatten” your practice.

Recently, an unencrypted USB drive (also known as a flash drive, thumb drive) resulted in a $150,000 fine for a dermatology practice.  The device contained protected health information for over 2,200 patients.  Evidently the device was stolen from the vehicle of one of its staff members.  The practice agreed on a settlement for the fine in addition to a corrective action plan to correct HIPAA compliance issues.

Recent studies indicate that hepatitis C can remain infectious at room temperatures for up to 6-weeks.  Is your practice following the latest infection control guidelines for infection control? CDC also reveals that approximately 3-million adults in the U.S. are infected with hepatitis C virus, particularly the Baby Boomers (born from 1945 through 1965). Of the individuals who are infected, 3 out of 4 have no idea they have it. Once infected, 8 out of 10 people remain infected for life. These numbers are staggering.

We receive a great deal of calls to our office inquiring what to do with old paper records in storage.  Typically the dental office has long since transitioned to a computer and now fully digital.

Old records are stored in dentist’s houses, basements, storage buildings or within the dental office. This is particularly a problem when a new dentist is taking over the practice and wonders what to do with records of patients he or she may never see as patients.  Selling dentists and dentists in practice for a long time should carefully review the regulations.

It was common years ago for health care facilities to flush unused pharmaceuticals down the toilet or dump it down the drain.  The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) conducted studies and identified numerous pharmaceutical compounds in our nation’s rivers, lakes, streams and drinking waters.

Despite the complexity of waste management, dental offices must evaluate the types of wastes generated and dispose of such waste properly. According to Universal Waste and Hazardous management at Healthcare Facilities in Tennessee, “the lack of a viable environmental compliance program can obviously be used as evidence of a lack of intent to comply.

Our office receives numerous questions from dental offices inquiring about the scope of duties for dental assistants in Tennessee.  Dental Assistants must practice within the scope of duties outlined by Tennessee Rules governing the practice of dental assistants.  The dental assistant is required to stay up to date on these rules and maintain a current license and certifications. You may renew at www.tennesseeanytime.org

The below information is a guideline adapted from RULES GOVERNING THE PRACTICE OF DENTAL ASSISTANTS as set forth by the Tennessee Board of Dentistry.  Please visit the website at http://www.state.tn.us/sos/rules/0460/0460-04.20120319.pdf

Train employees on the new label elements and SDS format for the new changes made to the Hazard Communication Standard which brings into alignment the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals. Please note that this rule requires pictograms on labels as of June 1, 2015 to alert users of the chemical hazards to which they may be exposed. Each pictogram consists of a symbol on a white background framed within a red border and represents a distinct hazard(s).