It’s Your Call April 2018

It’s Your Call

OSHA: Does your office have caution signs?  If so, are the signs OSHA compliant?

Caution signs are meant to warn against potential hazards like hot surfaces or wet floors. OSHA requires a specific design for these signs. The sigh should have a yellow background and a black panel with yellow letters. Any letters used against the yellow background shall be black. The colors shall be those of opaque glossy samples as specified in ANSI Z53.1-1967 or  ANSI Z535.1-2006(R2011), incorporated by reference in § 1910.6. The major message shall be presented in either pictographs, written text or both. It should also be understandable to all employees.

HIPAA: If our office has a breach, what is the deadline for reporting to Health and Human Services (HHS)?

A breach impacting less than 500 records should be reported within 60 days of the end of the calendar year from the discovery of the breach. If your office had a breach in 2017, it should have been reported no later than midnight of March 1. A good rule of thumb is to report breaches without reasonable delay and within 60 days of discovery. For breaches impacting 500 or more records, the breach report must be submitted to Health and Human Services at the same time patients and the local prominent media are notified. These notices can be submitted via the HHS secure, online portal. Penalties for late reporting have been as much as $475ooo, so timely reporting will save you from potential headaches, stress, and fines.