Medical Software Company SNAFU

This is the time of year that I bought my Electronic Medical Record Software.  Every year you have to pay for “support”.  This costs almost half as much as the software cost when purchased new.  I’m sure that it will increase in price annually.  The support people are available if I have any problems.  Like the cable company is available if you have a problem with your cable.  Enough said? 

I was thinking it was time to pay the support bill.  The other day I checked my online banking, and – SURPRISE!!!! – they had taken their money out of my checking account.  There was no warning.  No: “Dear Dr. Lasermed – next week we are going to take a huge chunk of money out of your checking account.”  Nothing.  I got an e-mail the day they took the money.

I generally don’t authorize anyone to take things out of my accounts without letting me know first.  I don’t have credit cards.  I only have debit cards.

I called the company.  They said “it’s in your contract”.  The contract is 8 pages of little tiny legal printing.  They didn’t say that they warned me a year ago.  They also said they assumed that the card was a credit card. 

I spoke with the nice people at my bank.  They have dealt with this problem before.  If I deposited cash before closing, there wouldn’t be a problem.  I could write a letter to the company so they didn’t do that again.  Check and check.  Blood pressure is beginning to come down. 

It’s amazing how the only times I ever have problems with my account are when some business takes something they are not authorized to do.  The woman at the software company said “THEIR SOFTWARE IS NOT SET UP TO SEND NOTIFICATION BEFORE THEY DO ANY BILLING”.  I want to know why they can’t fix their software, since that’s what they do, write software?  She really didn’t know. 

Confidentiality and Medical Records

HIPAA – Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act

Are you frustrated because you called the doctor’s office about your Mom’s medications and nobody would talk to you?  Are you angry because you called to check on your husband’s prescription and the pharmacy couldn’t tell you anything?  Did you want to get a copy of your latest lab results, and they said you needed to come sign a form?  These are all things you can thank your federal government for. 

Several years ago, the government decided that there was too much sharing of information in the medical profession.  So they set to work making rules and regulations about it.  As usual, everything got more complicated. 

Now there is that form that you have to sign at every doctor’s office.  You see it at the dentist and the pharmacy, too.  We have to protect your privacy and tell you what your rights are.  The only “entity” who can invade your privacy without asking is – are you ready? – the government!  If they want something, we have to give it to them, without asking YOU.

It used to be that I could just call radiology or the lab and ask for your results.  Not anymore.  Now I need a records release all signed and witnessed.  Can I send your Pap smear results to your medical doctor?  Not without your signed consent.  If I send you to another doctor for surgery, then you come back to see me, I need to get a records release to get the operative record if s/he forgot to send it to me. 

Those sign in sheets everyone used to have?  Those aren’t really legal anymore, either.  You can see who else has an appointment etc.  That’s a VIOLATION!!!!!! (Insert Mr. Impatient giggling here – he thinks that’s funny).  We’re even supposed to keep our screens turned away from patients so you can’t see what we’re typing.  What???

Basically, this law has created more paper work.  It makes most of us in medicine much more paranoid about what we can and can’t say or send.  It also makes us very, very careful about whom we talk to about what.  There are disclaimers everywhere about changing identifying details unless we get permission. 

When the law first started, we even had major discussions about whether or not a fax signature was a “legal” signature, or whether we had to have the “original” signature.  Somehow, as fax machines have become more common, that has worked itself out.  It’s OK to fax your signature now. 

The law was intended to maintain your privacy.  I think, as usual, bureaucracy has made things more complicated without necessarily doing what was intended.  It came from the government.  So is anyone surprised?