Doctors and HIPAA

Not sure if this goes in Social Issues but here we are...

I've a question for you all about HIPAA and 'what happens' to a doctor if you report them.

Mostly I'm posting this because MRuss stepped out with courage to post about her personal plight here: Harry Weinstien has me thinking.

For me?

1- A doctor gravely violated my right to privacy. I spoke to my doctor about something so gravely intimate I could barely bring myself to do so and my doctor turned right around and told someone else who called me up and brought it to my attention thinking they might 'help'.

2 - The same doctor made a mistake on my medication and I ended up in the ER. To cover her arse she told the ER I was there for domestic violence help which was so out of line and completely WRONG it was laughable. Even the ER doctors found it laughable considering the circumstances.

3 - The same doctor (of course) has tried for months to diagnose a problem I'm having to no avail. She can't stand it that she wasn't right calling the problem an overload of cortisol (which it isn't) even though she was 99.9% SURE it was the problem. When she was wrong she told me I needed to go 'talk to someone about it' - so because SHE was wrong - it was all in my head? NO! (Since it's been diagnoses successfully by another physician).

4 - When this doctor's staff found out she violated my privacy rights? She told me I 'missed an appointment' and now would no longer give me service in her clinic.

So. What now?

Should I report her to HIPAA?

What will happen to her and, well, to me?

It's a small town and getting smaller still.

What I know is I am not a 'snowflake' and normally I wouldn't do anything about it - but the more I think about it???

What say you?

Thank you in advance.

peace

a reply to: silo13

Call an attorney. (Taking money is the only way to "teach" the Dr's lessons)

Do not depend on us keyboard warriors.

Edit: Sorry about your situation and I hope it all turns out OK.



,

a reply to: seasonal

I would like to know what would happen to her though? I don't want to take down anyone's livelyhood or have them publicly humiliated. On the other hand - I was - over and again. I'm not looking for an 'eye for an eye' or 'revenge' I would just like to know if there are any here on ATS who've been through the process and knows more than I.

Thank you Seasonal.

Report your complaint directly to Health and Human Services (HHS). They are the government oversight for HIPAA. Just do a google search for HIPAA VIOLATION FINES...I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. You can still sue civilly (I believe), but HHS will lay the smack down institutionally. They can also go after licenses, make reports to the National Practitioner Database (NPDB), where derogatory information on providers is stored. You have lots of options...

a reply to: Lab4Us

That sounds ghastly. I would hate to have her in trouble but... What's the old saying - if she does it to me she'll do it to another?

And who gets the 'fine' money? I'm not looking to get rich here.

I'll go look it up.

Thank you.

originally posted by: silo13
a reply to: seasonal

I would like to know what would happen to her though? I don't want to take down anyone's livelyhood or have them publicly humiliated. On the other hand - I was - over and again. I'm not looking for an 'eye for an eye' or 'revenge' I would just like to know if there are any here on ATS who've been through the process and knows more than I.

Thank you Seasonal.

It’s nice you want to be nice, however doctors need oversight from their professional boards. If she is retaliating against you (no more service since you called me out), she needs to be answering to her ethics board. If it was merely a mistake that she violated your HIPAA rights, she should have apologized and offerred to make it right.

Like Seasonal said, you should talk to a lawyer (should be some around with free initial consultation). And I would argue better to have to travel for medical care than be the victim of malpractice, which can go very badly for a patient.

a reply to: Lab4Us

There is NO DOUBT she knew exactly what she was doing when she told her Pastor HIGHLY PERSONAL (emphasis on HIGHLY) information which he then acted on.

Then the rest degraded into this mess.

Thank you for your input. I think I will go ahead and talk to a lawyer or the State, someone. HIPAA.

Almost forgot, all that will likely happen to doc, money-wise, is her malpractice insurance rates will likely go up, not like she would pay fully...that’s what the insuramce is for.

More important (seems to me) is that her misconduct goes on record.

a reply to: silo13

I have dealt with a HIPAA complaint once. The hospital where my mother died would not release several pages of her medical records. They claimed they were just "missing."

I was the administratrix to her estate and the HIPAA mandates that I have a right to obtain the records.

Anyway, I filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (Office of Civil Rights), online. (Link to file a HIPAA violation complaint) They followed up with the hospital and got the same answer that I did. They gave neither them nor me an explanation even though they had a legal obligation to retain those records.

The. End.

They couldn't/wouldn't do anything else to try to help me get those records.

Alternatively, I could have contacted my state Attorney General's office for help. (I gave up though.) However, they may be compelled to help if they can find a legal injury to prosecute.

Otherwise, they likely won't do anything to *help* either.

So...that's what I suggest if you want to follow up...start with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, if you exhaust their *help* and come up with nothing, try your state Attorney General's office.

My biggest takeaway from my experience is that the public is pretty much helpless to HIPAA violations and enforcing the HIPAA.

HOWEVER, if you can find a whistleblower willing to speak up about what happened (someone who works with your doctor, etc. and has knowledge of practices violating the HIPAA) that may get you somewhere. There is money to be made from whistleblower lawsuits so attorneys pay attention to them.

I hope this helps!

ETA:

Also, I would be surprised if an attorney would want to give you a free consultation if you do not have a legal injury they can make money from (negligence, medical malpractice, wrongful death, etc.). Attorneys are miserable, horrible, evil creatures that only care about cases that can bring them a lot of money for lost wages, documented pain and suffering...that kind of thing.

a reply to: silo13


She is a well paid and very well educated person, and as such should keep her trap shut.

(Brash answer-no insults meant)
So you have a choice to make. Either you are serious and want to have her punished, or you are going to let her off the hook. This seems like a serious breech of patient-Dr privilege. I would be pissed.

Call an attorney, they will do a consult for free and you can see what the real deal is.

a reply to: silo13

You have already gotten good advice so my only addition would be for you to think about who else has this doctor wronged, or might also wrong in the future.

If it is only a single offense loss of license is unlikely I would think but it starts the paper trail if they do not fix themselves.

originally posted by: silo13
Not sure if this goes in Social Issues but here we are...

I've a question for you all about HIPAA and 'what happens' to a doctor if you report them.

Mostly I'm posting this because MRuss stepped out with courage to post about her personal plight here: Harry Weinstien has me thinking.

For me?

1- A doctor gravely violated my right to privacy. I spoke to my doctor about something so gravely intimate I could barely bring myself to do so and my doctor turned right around and told someone else who called me up and brought it to my attention thinking they might 'help'.

2 - The same doctor made a mistake on my medication and I ended up in the ER. To cover her arse she told the ER I was there for domestic violence help which was so out of line and completely WRONG it was laughable. Even the ER doctors found it laughable considering the circumstances.

3 - The same doctor (of course) has tried for months to diagnose a problem I'm having to no avail. She can't stand it that she wasn't right calling the problem an overload of cortisol (which it isn't) even though she was 99.9% SURE it was the problem. When she was wrong she told me I needed to go 'talk to someone about it' - so because SHE was wrong - it was all in my head? NO! (Since it's been diagnoses successfully by another physician).

4 - When this doctor's staff found out she violated my privacy rights? She told me I 'missed an appointment' and now would no longer give me service in her clinic.

So. What now?

Should I report her to HIPAA?

What will happen to her and, well, to me?

It's a small town and getting smaller still.

What I know is I am not a 'snowflake' and normally I wouldn't do anything about it - but the more I think about it???

What say you?

Thank you in advance.

peace

HIPAA violations are reported to the Office of Civil Rights (OCR).

OCR

Thank you everyone.

I'll take you up on your suggestions and let you know how it turns out.

I really appreciate your input...

Thanks again!

Hi, sorry to hear that you've had such a poor experience/service from your doctor.

I'm not sure if the rules are the same or even similar for the US but, here in the UK, conversations with healthcare professionals are covered by strict rules relating to confidentiality. The only circumstances where one is allowed to break confidentiality are; if the client provides information suggesting that someone may be harmed or a crime may be committed and/or where a person provides information that they intend to harm themselves or commit a crime.

Healthcare professionals are governed by a code of conduct. If this is the case in the U.S. and if your doctor has shared confidential information without your consent then that is a SERIOUS breach of their code of conduct.

Confidence and trust in your healthcare providers is absolutely essential. The therapeutic relationship and their ability to perform their duties competently is tied intrinsically to their ability to uphold the principles set out in their professional standards.
In this case, your doctor has knowingly broken the rules, has damaged and undermined trust and confidence, has brought their profession and their own individual practice into disrepute and, as such, should be held to account.

If I were to knowingly breach the trust I have with my clients (and it must be knowingly, you really cannot do that by accident) then I would 100% expect to be investigated, fired and probably in a whole world of other # I can't even begin to imagine.

I am also seriously wondering under what circumstances the doctor felt it was appropriate to inform the A&E department that you were attending due to domestic violence? I cannot imagine a circumstance where it would be appriproate for your GP to share that information (even if it were true) if your presenting condition and the required treatment were not immediately connected to your attendance.

Please do not dismiss your experience or try to excuse the treatment you have received, and PLEASE do not imagine for one second that you are being unreasonable or that somehow you are being "a snowflake". This is serious stuff and the doctor is well aware of it.

In regards the medication errors; it depends upon what you mean by "made a mistake". In some cases, and in treating some conditions, it can be a matter of "trial and error" in ascertaining the most effective and appropriate medication/treatment for an individual, (particularly if it relates to something more ambiguous such as mental health).
Unfortunately, at times, the 'error' part can have unforseen (and sometime serious) consequences.. this is not inherently a 'black mark' against the doctor.
However, if medication was prescribed to someone with say, a known allergy or, it was prescribed when the medication was clearly contraindicated then that is a different (and more serious) matter.


Finally, the doctor having issues diagnosing a specific condition is not automatically a negative against them either, as diagnosis can be a complicated affair. However, the notion that the doctor had set their mind upon a diagnosis and was unwilling to explore further possibilities, even when presented with new/additional information does seem to add to a growing picture of incompetence on their part. I don't wish to pry and I don't expect you to say either way but, as you say the doctor implied it was "all in (your) head", I wonder if you have presented with some kind of mental health issue in the past? Unfortunately, I have observed all too often that, individuals who have been previously diagnosed with a mental health problem have a significantly more difficult time with having their voices heard and concerns taken seriously by other medical professionals and frequently their concerns are dismissed as psychosomatic. Perhaps this is not relevant in your case but, if it is, I would say this is yet more evidence that the doctor in question may need to reexamine some of their practices.

Anyway, sorry for the wall of text. I sincerely hope that you get this issue resolved and that you recieve a much better standard of care in the future.

a reply to: silo13

So is this a doctor like dr peppers a doctor?

Hubby & I had problems with a doctor in our small town too. He was so far off base! But we never had a 'bad' doctor before & were questioning ourselves! Everything he told us & diagnosed us with, was so blatantly wrong! But if you speak up, even respectfully, 'that kind' gets furiously defensive! How DARE a lay person question an almighty doctor who went to medical school for ten years?!

So until the fourth incident, when he overdosed hubby on blood thinners, which he didn't even need, & he bled out & had to be hospitalized, we thought it must just be us!

And even when he ended up in the hospital, the hospital doctors were very careful that they didn't come right out & blame the family doc.
'It was just too big of a dosage for him!' Everyone is afraid of retaliation!

After that, we found a great doc in the next town! And not long after, we heard original doc moved to Arizona & set up a practice with another doctor.

The thing is, after he was gone, we heard horror stories from a lot of other people too! Everyone was afraid to speak up, because in a small town, word spreads like a bad virus! But I've often wondered if he's harmed anyone even worse in Arizona?!

One thing I think you should do though, is check your medical records & make sure there are no references to domestic abuse or diagnosis of mental problems in there. Incorrect information can be hard to get removed & could haunt you for the rest of hour life! The more time that goes by, the harder it will be to get it removed!

Good luck!
WOQ

Just get away from that doctor and request all of your records and read them. She has probably modified them to make you look crazy. If she has, report her to the proper government agency, do not worry about discrediting her, she is probably trying to discredit you.

I'm wondering if this doctor has an ethics board to report to as well? I'm about six months shy of being a counselor and we also have to abide by HIPAA and we have the ACA sort of controlling everywhere so I'm wondering if doctors have a medical board that enforces things like this that could be contacted? They may very well revoke her license if she is a violator.

EDIT: Upon a second or so's more research they have a board of medicine so if you look into that you might be able to file a report against her while reporting your evidence.

a reply to: silo13

doctors get away with # like that because people like you dont want to report them and instead just whine about it online.

report them or they will continue doing # like that to other patients....

and as they mistreat other patients in similar ways you bear partial responsibility as you have it in your power to report them which might prevent them doing such to others. it becomes in part your own fault/decision to allow that doctor to inflict their negligence upon others.

unless you report them, then you've done your due diligence

a reply to: NobodiesNormal

Whatevs. Like reporting people is a guarantee they will have consequences.

Please, the OP could be left to feel worse and more helpless. That was my experience, anyway.