Heightened privacy and security concerns, increased calls for
transparency of operations, and a growing home-based workforce have
prompted The Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity (AHDI)
and The Medical Transcription Industry Association (MTIA) to create
their Manual of Ethical Best Practices for the Healthcare
Documentation Sector. The manual will help healthcare
documentation/medical transcription businesses and professionals to
adopt policies and procedures for complying with HIPAA privacy and
security laws and operating in a manner consistent with ethical best
practices related to transcription billing, compensation, and
outsourcing. The manual is part of the associations’ ongoing commitment
to safeguarding protected health information and upholding the integrity
of the profession and industry.
“For many, this
will require a sea change in attitudes about legal and regulatory
compliance. Healthcare reform as well as federal and state initiatives
to eliminate fraud will only underscore the need for compliance.”
“With the emerging demand from healthcare delivery for increased
standardization and greater specificity around exchange of health
information, the time is ripe for the healthcare documentation sector to
look closely at its compliance practices to ensure that the sector is
best positioned to respond to the future needs of health care,” states
AHDI/MTIA CEO Peter Preziosi, PhD, CAE. “We want to be a resource for
business owners and healthcare documentation professionals in developing
policies, procedures, and contracts that reflect high-integrity business
practices and promote transparency around key issues that reflect well
on the industry as a whole.”