The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is legislation that protects the privacy of medical information. Founded in 1996, the law covers a wide range of issues involving medical care. In recent years, HIPAA Privacy Rule (officially known as Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information) has become increasingly important in battling against and prosecuting data breaches caused by hackers and others who unlawfully access this private information.
HIPAA penalizes medical center for cyber security breaches
Arbitration tips for startups
Long-term litigation can be problematic for any business. However, the implications can be particularly detrimental to new businesses and startups. It can be frustrating if the premise of the dispute is a class action lawsuit out of left field or a frivolous lawsuit. Moreover, even the threat of these disputes can cause an entrepreneur to fold up shop before they officially open for business.
Does your company have an anti-discrimination policy?
Legally, you must ensure that your company provides a workplace free from discrimination and the behaviors that go along with it -- harassment and retaliation. In order to make that clear to everyone who works in the company, including employees, managers and supervisors, you need a policy outlining prohibited behaviors, the complaint process and more.
Ruling could set precedent for Workers’ Comp cases and drug use
An Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals Judge recently ruled that a positive drug test should not impact an employee’s Workers’ Comp benefits. In this case, the injured employee was attempting to fix a piece of heavy machinery when a coworker activated it. The machine then crushed the worker’s hand. While receiving treatment, the man subsequently tested positive for marijuana, which called into question whether the injury was his fault.
