November 3, 1999 HIPAA Announcement:

100804 HIPAA Privacy: GAO Report on 1^st Year Experiences Under HIPAA

Ascension Health HIPAA Contacts:

GAO Issues Report on First-year Experiences Under HIPAA

The US government accountability office (GAO) has issued a report (GAO-04-965) to the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee entitled "Health Information: First-year Experiences Under the Federal Privacy Rule." The report focuses on interviews conducted with a number of groups, including AHIMA. In its recommendations and comments the GAO cited concerns regarding the "reporting for disclosures" as the number one burden associated with the rule that needed action.

To meet this concern the GAO suggests informing patients to whom information will be released (therefore eliminating the need for a disclosure reporting), and to have the Department of Health and Human Services conduct a public information campaign to improve awareness of patient's rights under the privacy rule. The GAO report can be found at: http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-04-965and the highlights can be found at: http://www.gao.gov/highlights/d04965high.pdf.