OCR Addresses Healthcare Discrimination Experienced by Deaf and Hard of Hearing Patients

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By Allison (Ally) Kjellander

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) entered into a Voluntary Resolution Agreement (“Agreement”) with CHI St. Vincent Hot Springs (“CHI”) to ensure there are effective communication accommodations in a healthcare setting for patients who are deaf or hard of hearing. The Agreement resolves a complaint filed with OCR by an individual (“Complainant”) alleging that CHI discriminated against her based on her disabilities (deafness and Usher Syndrome) when CHI failed to provide Complainant with appropriate auxiliary aids during her September 1, 2019, Emergency Department visit. Complainant alleged that this instance violated Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (“Section 504”) and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act of 2010 (“Section 1557”). Read more

Department of Health & Human Services Upgrades Security Risk Assessment Tool

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By Kim Stanger, Steven Lau, and Romaine Marshall

Under the Health Information Privacy and Portability Act (HIPAA), “covered entities” (generally speaking health care providers and their business associates) must all complete a risk assessment to identify and mitigate potential security risks (45 C.F.R. 164.308(a)(1)(ii)(A)). As many companies and providers have discovered, completing a risk assessment is time and resource-intensive and can be an overwhelming and expensive undertaking. Read more