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Business Laws
Business Law #1The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act or HIPAA was effective April 14, 1996. It applies to any organization or individuals who retain or collect health information. It is followed by doctors, dentists, hospitals, and other health care providers. Examples of small businesses that would fall under this act would be medical or dental billing, medical transcription, and medical dictation. HIPAA helps ensure that all medical records, billing, and patient accounts meet certain standards with regard to documentation, handling, and privacy. It also requires that all patients have access to their medical records and gives them the ability to correct any errors and be informed how their personal information will be shared. Your office is required to have an Information Security Officer, have a written policy to protect patient information, and have mandatory training for employees who have access to patient information. Medical information lost under the wrong set of circumstances, such as employee negligence or identity theft, may result in fines up to $250,000 per occurrence and up to 10 years jail time for owners and/or executives.
Business Law #2The Gramm, Leach, Bliley Safeguard Rule or GLB, applies to any organization that maintains personal financial information regarding it's clients or customers. Organizations may include financial institutions, insurance companies, lenders, brokers, accountants, financial planners, and real estate agents. Non-public information lost under the wrong set of circumstances may result in fines up to $1,000,000 per occurance, removal of management, and executives within an organization can be held accountable for non-compliance both civilly and criminally. Click here to view this entire law: GLB
Business Law #3The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act or FACTA applies to every business and individual who maintains, or otherwise possesses, consumer information for a business purpose. This act pertains to just about anyone in business, including you! Collecting information about your clients and prospects as simple as their names, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses all fall under this act. Employee or customer informatin lost under the wrong set of circumstances may result in federal and state fines of $2,500 per occurrence, civil liability of $1,000 per occurrence, and class action lawsuits with no statutory limitation. You can check out the entire FACTA law here: FACTA The Federal Trade Commission estimates that roughly 10 million Americans have been victimized every year, costing consumers $5 billion and businesses $48 billion annually.
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