Physician Law Blog

Just ask Cornell Prescription Pharmacy about disposal of unshredded paper pharmacy records containing protected health information (PHI), and you will hear that this pharmacy paid $125,000 plus it has entered a Resolution Agreement with the OCR. Not only is this pharmacy paying a significant penalty, it will be under a corrective action plan to correct deficiencies in their HIPAA compliance program and must submit the members of their workforce to receive training on that program within 30 days of implementing the policies and procedures.

Just a quick reminder - the Affordable Care Act enrollment deadline for 2015 is approaching. Sunday, February 15 is the last day to enroll in a health insurance plan for 2015. If one misses this deadline, they may not be able to get coverage until 2016. And while one may not get sick in 2015, if they don't have health insurance, they'll miss out on preventive care services and may pay a hefty fine when they file their federal income tax return next year.