REPEAT/Siemens Medical Solutions Health Services Corporation Designates Chief Privacy Officer as HIPAA Privacy Official.Business Editors REPEATING...July 23 transmission MALVERN, PA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 23, 2001 Siemens Medical Solutions Siemens Medical Solutions (Siemens Med) is a supplier to the healthcare industry, and is headquartered in Erlangen, Germany. Its U.S. division, Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc., is a Delaware corporation, with headquarters in Malvern, Pennsylvania. Health Services health services Managed care The benefits covered under a health contract Corporation (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange :SI) (Siemens Health Services) has designated Chief Privacy Officer Gregory S. Warner as its HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act of 1996, Public Law 104-191) Also known as the "Kennedy-Kassebaum Act," this U.S. law protects employees' health insurance coverage when they change or lose their jobs (Title I) and provides standards for patient health, Privacy Official. Warner will be responsible for overseeing company-wide compliance with the "Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information" announced April 12th by Secretary Tommy G. Thompson of the federal Department of Health and Human Services Noun 1. Department of Health and Human Services - the United States federal department that administers all federal programs dealing with health and welfare; created in 1979 Health and Human Services, HHS . Secretary Thompson's release of the privacy regulation is the culmination of an extensive effort involving government, health industry stakeholders, and privacy advocates to enhance the protection of individuals' personal health information as required by Subtitle F - Administrative Simplification of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1996. According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) website, Title I of HIPAA protects health insurance coverage for workers and their families when of 1996 (HIPAA). Warner currently oversees all relevant privacy-related compliance activities within Siemens Health Services, including the company's Internet privacy policy, and policies and procedures Policies and Procedures are a set of documents that describe an organization's policies for operation and the procedures necessary to fulfill the policies. They are often initiated because of some external requirement, such as environmental compliance or other governmental governing the business integrity, confidentiality, and acceptable use of health information that is under the company's control on behalf of customers. As Siemens Health Services' HIPAA Privacy Official, Warner will work with the company's long standing Office of Information and Systems Security to align existing company policies, procedures, and operations associated with safeguarding protected health information protected health information Health informatics Any individually identifiable health informatlon that is used or circulated by an entity that falls under the governance of HIPAA; the privacy regulations mandate safeguards for protected health information, and the with the requirements established for "business associates" in the privacy regulation. Warner, a lawyer, will continue to report to Bonnie L. Shuman, Siemens Health Services' Vice President, General Counsel, and Corporate Secretary. "We have always had a corporate culture centered on strong information security and privacy protections," said Francis W. Lavelle, president and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of Siemens Health Services. "Many of the requirements established by the privacy regulation for "business associates" have long been standard operating procedures at Siemens." Warner has twelve years of experience developing and implementing the company's compliance programs associated with such areas as FDA-regulated medical devices and Medicare billing. In addition, Warner is a charter member of the company's HIPAA project policy and oversight team, which directs both the internal HIPAA compliance program as well as its efforts to support customers' compliance with HIPAA's requirements. Since 1995, Warner has counseled management and subject matter experts on Congressional activity related to HIPAA and its associated standards development process, with a particular focus on the privacy and security standards. Warner also represents Siemens Health Services in matters related to the Siemens' worldwide compliance with health related regulations. Warner joined the company in 1989 after 5 years as a Philadelphia litigator lit·i·gate v. lit·i·gat·ed, lit·i·gat·ing, lit·i·gates v.tr. To contest in legal proceedings. v.intr. To engage in legal proceedings. . About Siemens Medical Solutions Health Services Corporation Siemens Medical Solutions, Erlangen, Germany, is one of the largest suppliers of medical technologies in the world, offering complete integrated solutions comprising innovative medical devices, advanced information technology as well as consulting services that increase efficiency of the healthcare system while improving the quality of care to patients worldwide. The company develops and manufactures a broad range of medical equipment including imaging systems for diagnostics, radiation therapy equipment for treatment, audiological products, life support and patient monitoring systems, anesthesia equipment and information technology solutions. Employing 28,000 worldwide, in fiscal 1999/2000, the Company reported new orders of 5.3 billion Euro and sales of 5.1 billion Euro. For more information visit www.siemensmedical.com. Based in Malvern, PA, Siemens Medical Solutions Health Services Corporation, an integrated part of Siemens Medical Solutions, offers a broad range of clinical, financial, and management applications and outsourcing and professional services to support health providers across the continuum of care. The group operates the health industry's largest Information Services See Information Systems. Center (ISC (1) (Internet Systems Consortium, Redwood City, CA www.isc.org) An organization founded by Paul Vixie, Carl Malamud and Rick Adams in 1994 and later sponsored by UUNET and other Internet companies. ) and Health Information Network for application hosting, e-commerce, enterprise systems management, and managed Internet and infrastructure services. As the premier Application Service Provider (ASP) in healthcare, the company operates health applications for over 1,000 health providers with connections to over 500,000 customer workstations, and processes 95 million transactions each day. More information can be found at www.smed.com. Press releases issued are available on our web site at: http://www.siemens-news.com |
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