Protected Health Information on Photocopier Hard
Drives
Many dental practices lease photocopiers and simply return
the photocopier to the leasing company to replace it with the latest model.
However, most dentists are unaware that their old photocopier could subject
their dental practice to substantial fines and penalties as a result of
violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. An
insurance company recently negotiated a settlement with the United States
Department of Health and Human Services in excess of one million dollars
[$1,000,000.00] over its failure to erase Protected Health Information from
leased photocopier hard drives, resulting in a breach of HIPAA.
This settlement is only one example of how Protected Health
Information may be electronically stored in locations that are not easily
apparent, and should serve as a motivator for every dental practice to ensure
that policies and procedures are in place regarding the return of photocopiers
at the expiration of the lease term. Dentists should perform a risk analysis
pursuant to HIPAA guidelines to ensure that every storage location of electronic
Protected Health Information has been identified, including computers, scanners,
flash drives and hard drives. Once the security risks of electronic Protected
Health Information have been assessed, dentists must implement policies for the
disposal of this Protected Health Information prior to the return or disposal of
the equipment.
Dentists should also ensure that each of its business associates
have executed a Business Associate Agreement that requires the business
associates to destroy all electronic Protected Health Information from devices
before returning or discarding them. A breach of HIPPA can result in
substantial fines, penalties and even a lack of patient confidence. By
conducting a HIPAA risk analysis assessment on a regular basis, dentists can
save time, money and frustration, as well as avoid reputational damage in the
healthcare community.
Stuart J. Oberman, Esq. handles a wide range of legal
issues for the dental profession including practice sales, real estate
transactions, lease agreements, HIPAA and OSHA compliance, board complaints,
employment law, and entity formation. For questions or comments regarding this
article please call (770) 554-1400 or visit www.obermanlaw.com.