If you own a company or organization that handles any form of personal health information or health records, it is crucial that you take the proper steps to stay in compliance with HIPAA regulations. Noncompliance can result in costly fines, civil lawsuits, and even closing of your practice or business in extreme cases. Be safe and ensure that you are in complete compliance with HIPAA.

There are some simple steps to get you started on your complete HIPAA compliance. This list is not exhaustive, but is a perfect starting point for most business owners who need to get going on their HIPAA compliance and are unsure where to start. Use this as your checklist:

-Find a training program and get HIPAA certification for yourself.

-Require all employees to take same training course for their HIPAA certification. HIPAA certification is fairly inexpensive and worthwhile for at least all management, if not all employees, especially if everyone has access to sensitive personal health information.

-Require HIPAA training for those who do no get full HIPAA certification

-Get in touch with all service providers and vendors to discuss their HIPAA privacy policies. Set written guidelines for any information you exchange.

-Contact your health insurance provider to find out their written policies on HIPAA compliance and to determine your responsibility in relaying any information from insurer to your employees.

-If you do not need direct access to personal health information, establish policy and procedures that ensures you do not receive anything other than Summary Health Information. Include in your policy the proper uses for Summary Health Information.

-Establish all policies and procedures regarding personal health information and HIPAA compliance in written form. Provide clients and customers with a copy.

-Create written guidelines for compliant procedure in case any files one about your use of personal health information

-Keep extensive written documentation of all activities with employees and clients. This will cover all your bases in the case of an audit.

This checklist is a general place to start on your continuing journey to HIPAA compliance. For every business or practice, the extended list will be much longer and will vary from organization to organization. Keep in mind your business or practice’s personal needs for compliance. Not everything in HIPAA compliance will apply to you.

Of all the things on the list, getting HIPAA certification is the most important because it serves as a precursor to everything else on the HIPAA compliance checklist. Without a good, solid understand of the HIPAA policies and regulations, you can not expect to be able to reach full compliance easily. There are plenty of inexpensive, easily accessible HIPAA certification programs available. Some of the programs are even offered online, allowing you and your employees to take them round the clock, whenever it works for their schedule. With these online HIPAA certification programs available, there is no excuse for not having a certification yourself and having all your employees certified as well.

For more information, please visit our HIPAA Certification website.

For more information, please visit our HIPAA Certification website at http://www.hipaaexams.com/hipaa-certification.asp

Author Bio: For more information, please visit our HIPAA Certification website.

Category: Medicines and Remedies
Keywords: HIPAA Certification