Welfare Fund changes procedures on privacy regulations

Sep 23, 2004 6:00 PM

Federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) protects personal health information for individuals

New federal regulations to safeguard personal health information went into effect last year and the UFT Welfare Fund has changed some of its procedures in order to comply.

The new privacy regulations restrict the disclosure of some information - even giving a member protected information about a dependent - and require health plans like the Welfare Fund to establish tight security measures.

"We are committed to continue to serve our members faithfully while fulfilling the legal responsibility to safeguard the privacy of all health information we maintain as part of our operations," said Welfare Fund Executive Director Arthur Pepper in a letter to members.

The letter included details of the new regulations and a reprint of the Fund's privacy policy.

Among other things, the new regulations prohibit most uses or disclosures of personal health information without written authorization by the member. Members may revoke such authorizations at any time.

However, the Fund may acquire and disclose personal health information for purposes of treatment, payment of benefits or for its overall operations without specific written authorization.

The Fund may also contact members to provide information about treatment alternatives or other health-related benefits.

The new regulations are known as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Assistant Director of the Welfare Fund Robert Burwick will be the Fund's HIPAA Privacy Officer and he will be responsible for investigating any complaints about improper disclosures. He will also develop implementation policies and procedures relating to HIPAA. Pepper noted that since the Privacy Act's regulations place various restrictions on the Fund's use and disclosure of protected health information, it "will limit our ability, in some cases, to disclose a dependent's medical information to the member."

As a security precaution, from now on when members call the Fund about their accounts, they will be required to provide their Social Security number, address and date of birth.

In order to protect members'personal health information HIPA A has several components geared toward standardizing and simplifying claim processing. Pepper
said the Fund "hopes to make the new regulations transparent to members," and noted that "there are minor procedures that we all have to adapt to."

The accompanying Q&A will help answer some basic questions about the new regulations:

"Most important," Pepper said, "is that we plan to continue to provide our outstanding services to all our members while safeguarding their information."

HIPAA Q&A

What is HIPAA?
HIPAA is the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. The privacy portion of this law safeguards the confidentiality of our members' and dependents' protected health information (PHI).

What is protected health information (PHI)?
PHI is individually identifiable health information:

• To or from a healthcare provider, health plan or clearing house;
• Information that might identify the person or relate to an individual's physical or mental health.
  

How will this law affect my dealings with the Welfare Fund?
You will be asked for four identifiers when you call:

• your name
• Social Security number
• home address
• date of birth.
  

Will I be able to get health information concerning my dependent(s)?
If your child is a minor, we can in most cases discuss your question. However, we cannot discuss information about your spouse or children over the age of 18. In order for us to do so we will need a Personal Representative Authorization Form, which is available on our Web site or by calling the Welfare Fund Hotline.

What if I ask a union representative to help me in dealing with problems concerning the Welfare Fund or a health insurance company?
Along with the information you give them, you should also sign a PHI Authorization Form. This allows us to discuss problems with outside agencies or your UFT representative.

If I have any complaints and feel my confidential health information (PHI) has been compromised, what should I do?
Send all complaints with documentation to:
Robert Burwick, UFT Welfare Fund, 52 Broadway, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10004.

If your child is going to college, please reference
www.uft.org/member/benefits/FTstudent/