CALIFORNIA
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUES $187,500 ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY TO
KAISER
PERMANENTE BELLFLOWER HOSPITAL IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY
Date:
7/16/2009
Number:
09-67
Contact:
Al Lundeen - (916) 440-7259
SACRAMENTO
The
California Department of Public Health (CDPH) announced today that
Kaiser Permanente Bellflower Hospital in Los Angeles County has been
assessed an administrative penalty of $187,500 after a determination
that the facility failed to prevent unauthorized access to confidential
patient medical information.
This
is the second time CDPH has assessed an administrative penalty to this
facility under new legislation intended to protect the confidentiality
of medical records, said Dr. Mark Horton, director of CDPH. “We are
very concerned with violations of patient confidentiality and their
potential harm to the residents of California. Medical privacy is a
fundamental right and a critical component of quality medical care in
California.”
CDPH
has determined that the hospital failed to prevent unauthorized access
to patients’ medical information, as required by Section 1280.15 of the
Health and Safety Code. The hospital compromised the privacy of four
patients when eight employees improperly accessed records.
An
administrative penalty of $25,000 may be assessed against a medical
facility for the breach of each patient’s medical information. A
penalty of $17,500 is added for each subsequent breach of each
patient’s medical information. The penalty amount of $187,500
represents $100,000 for the first breach of four individual’s medical
record and $87,500 for five additional breaches of those medical
records after the first.
Facilities
are required to submit a plan of correction to CDPH within 10 working
days and implement a plan of correction to prevent future
incidents. Facilities can appeal an administrative penalty by
requesting a hearing within 10 calendar days of notification. If a
hearing is requested, the penalties are to be paid if upheld following
appeal.
All
hospitals in California are required to be in compliance with
applicable state and federal laws and regulations governing general
acute care hospitals. The hospitals are required to comply with these
standards to ensure quality of care.
In
2008, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed legislation, SB 541 and AB
211, to improve patient privacy laws and to address breaches of
confidential information.
SB
541 by Senator Elaine Alquist (D-Santa Clara) sets health facility
fines for privacy breaches and increases the fines for serious medical
errors in hospitals. The new law ensured that health care providers
face real consequences when they fail to protect patients. For
facilities, fines for disclosing private medical information range up
to $250,000 per reported event.
AB
211 by Assemblymember Dave Jones (D-Sacramento) requires health
providers to prevent unlawful access, use or disclosure of patients'
medical information and hold health care providers and other
individuals accountable for ensuring the privacy of patients.
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