Editor's note Oct. 30, 2009: The FTC today announced "At the request of Members of Congress, the Federal Trade Commission is delaying enforcement of the “Red Flags” Rule until June 1, 2010, for financial institutions and creditors subject to enforcement by the FTC." Source: FTC

Identity Theft "Red Flags":  How Healthcare Providers Can Protect Themselves and Patients from Identity Theft.

On November 9, 2007, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), along with the banking regulatory agencies, published final rules entitled "Identity Theft Red Flags and Address Discrepancies Under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003"[1].  Perhaps because health care providers don't ordinarily track actions of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve System and the other bank regulators, it came as a surprise to the health care industry to learn that the FTC thought that hospitals, physicians and other providers could be "creditors" subject to the Red Flags Rule.  When the industry did learn of this interpretation, there was great concern. 

It’s difficult to complete a puzzle when pieces are missing. A recent AMA webcast indicated that a significant piece missing in the health reform puzzle was tort reform, and one of the acknowledged factors in the “rising cost of health care in the US is caused by … unlimited malpractice rewards….” (1) Yvonne Mart Fox, Practice Management Consultant, 2009.

Chris Thorman at SoftwareAdvice.com now reports on a survey of smartphone use by healthcare providers. The results of the smartphone survey are pretty clear: among anyone associated with a hospital - with the notable exception of hospital administrators - the iPhone is the smartphone of choice.