Case: A federal appeals court has shot down what had been the fourth largest OCR penalty for a HIPAA violation as having “no lawful basis.” That decision means that instead of $4.3 million, the … [Read more...]
Labs in Court
4.3 Million Is Too High a Penalty for HIPAA Violation, Says Federal Court
February 19, 2021
Labs in Court
CLIA Lab Subject to HIPAA Not Necessarily Exempt from State Medical Privacy Law
February 16, 2021
Case: Plasma donors filed a class action claiming that a plasma donation company’s use of a donor-identification system based on a donor’s fingerprints and biometric information without consent … [Read more...]
Compliance Perspectives
How to Audit the Effectiveness of Your Lab Compliance Plan
February 7, 2021
If you’re reading this, it’s a pretty good bet that you’ve put a compliance plan into place at your lab. But just how effective is it? To answer this crucial question, you must consider not only what … [Read more...]
TOOL
Model Social Distancing Policy
February 7, 2021
As the pandemic drags on, labs and other essential businesses that remain open must be scrupulous to ensure employees maintain social distancing both at and away from the workplace. Here’s a Model … [Read more...]
Labs in Court
Employee Can’t Blame Positive Marijuana Test on Testing Lab’s Negligence
February 4, 2021
Case: An oil and gas worker was reassigned to a less desirable warehouse position after his hair follicle test came back positive for marijuana. The worker insisted he was clean—his urine drug and … [Read more...]
Georgia Physician Pays $36,000 to Settle HIPAA Right of Access Violation Charges
January 14, 2021
Case: In April 2019, the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) received a complaint about a primary care physician practice’s failure to respond to a patient’s request for access to his medical records. A … [Read more...]
Tool: Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccination Policy
January 14, 2021
It behooves you to ensure that lab workers get vaccinated against COVID-19 to protect not only themselves but also co-workers, patients and others at your facility. But what if workers neglect or just … [Read more...]
Tool: Voluntary COVID-19 Vaccination Policy
January 14, 2021
It behooves you to ensure that lab workers get vaccinated against COVID-19 to protect not only themselves but also co-workers, patients and others at your facility. But what if workers neglect or just … [Read more...]
Tool: Lab Worker’s Acknowledgement of Decision to Decline COVID-19 Vaccination
January 14, 2021
You should ensure that lab workers get vaccinated against COVID-19 to protect not only themselves but also co-workers, patients and others at your facility. But what if workers neglect or just plain … [Read more...]
Labs In Court: A roundup of recent cases and enforcement actions involving the diagnostics industry
January 10, 2021
LabCorp Can Sue Physician to Collect $117K Worth of “Pass-Through” Charges for Uninsured Patients Case: Labs like LabCorp typically enter “pass-through” arrangements with physicians covering … [Read more...]
