Privacy Certification for Business Associates Program Awards Two New Certifications
U.S. Newswire (July 19, 2004) –
The Privacy Certification for Business Associates (PCBA) program today announced that it has awarded certification to two companies- National Imaging Associates, based in Hackensack, New Jersey, and Health Dialog of Boston, Massachusetts.
The PCBA program was established in 2003 by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations and the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), the nation's leading advocates for quality in health care. PCBA certification is an indication that an organization has rigorous protections in place to prevent the unintentional release of personal health information, an important concern in light of new Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requirements that took effect in October 2002. To earn certification, both organizations underwent a thorough, on-site review.
"A vital factor in assuring quality health care is embracing, applying, and continuously enhancing information privacy standards," said John J. Donahue, President and CEO, National Imaging Associates. "This certification from PCBA solidifies our efforts and our commitment to superior utilization management that meets high quality standards for health information privacy."
The PCBA certification program is designed to assess whether organizations referred to as 'business associates' under HIPAA, such as software vendors and benefit management firms sufficiently safeguard personal health information. HIPAA requires that "covered entities," such as health plans and hospitals, perform due diligence and obtain satisfactory assurances that their business associates are appropriately protecting private health care information. Working with PCBA certified entities satisfies this requirement.
"Health Dialog has always placed a high priority on privacy. This certification validates the stringent internal standards Health Dialog has always followed to protect members," said George Bennett, CEO of Health Dialog. "Every member of the Health Dialog team plays a vital role in meeting the standards. Our ongoing commitment is to focus on the appropriate, timely and safe exchange of personal information, which is essential to providing high quality care."
The organizations' certification indicates that they have met rigorous standards related to protecting oral, written and electronic health information. Certification is also based on a review of processes and practices regarding the use, disclosure, and secure storage of personal health information. Among the required processes and practices are extensive employee training in protecting personal health information and allowing consumers access to their own health information. The program also requires that contracts between covered entities and their business associates spell out privacy-related responsibilities.
"The public doesn't distinguish between a privacy breach that's the fault of a business associate versus the fault of a covered entity," said William Tulloch, director, PCBA. "Working with certified business associates is simply good business. Certification reflects the commitment of National Imaging Associates and Health Dialog to keeping patient information confidential and is a sign to their clients and future clients that they're a trustworthy vendor that can support their HIPAA compliance efforts."
National Imaging Associates, Inc. is a radiology benefit management company offering services that cover more than 14 million health plan enrollees, and provides managed care clients with clinically-sound, information technology-based utilization management. As part of its offering, NIA also assesses the current imaging network of a health care organization and through a rigorous network development process identifies opportunities to establish the highest quality network that operates in the most cost effective manner. For more information, visit http://www.niainc.com.
Health Dialog is a leading provider of Health Coaching and data analytic services that help health plans and self-insured employers improve healthcare quality for their members/employees while reducing health care costs. By providing personalized support through specially trained health care professionals, the firm helps individuals manage their chronic conditions and discuss treatment options with their physicians. For more information about Health Dialog, please visit http://www.healthdialog.com.
Founded in 1951, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations seeks to continuously improve the safety and quality of care provided to the public through the provision of health care accreditation and related services that support performance improvement in health care organizations. The Joint Commission evaluates and accredits nearly 16,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States, including 8,000 hospitals and home care organizations, and more than 8,000 other health care organizations that provide long term care, assisted living, behavioral health care, laboratory and ambulatory care services. The Joint Commission also accredits health plans, integrated delivery networks, and other managed care entities. An independent, not-for-profit organization, the Joint Commission is the nation's oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in health care.
NCQA is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA accredits and certifies a wide range of health care organizations and manages the evolution of HEDIS(r), the performance measurement tool used by more than 90 percent of the nation's health plans. NCQA is committed to providing health care quality information through the Web and the media in order to help consumers, employers and others make more informed health care choices.
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