HIPAA Minimum Necessary Standard 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A nurse prints an entire patient chart to answer a physician's question about medication dosages. This action most likely:
- Complies with the Minimum Necessary Standard because the physician requested it
- Violates the Minimum Necessary Standard by accessing more PHI than needed (Correct answer)
- Is permitted because nurses have broad access to patient records by default
- Is compliant as long as the printed record is shredded after use
Correct answer: Violates the Minimum Necessary Standard by accessing more PHI than needed
Printing an entire chart when only medication information was needed likely exceeds the minimum necessary PHI for the task at hand.
Question 2: Which statement best describes how the Minimum Necessary Standard interacts with a valid authorization signed by the patient?
- The Minimum Necessary Standard still applies and limits what can be disclosed even with authorization
- A valid patient authorization removes the Minimum Necessary Standard requirement for that disclosure (Correct answer)
- The Minimum Necessary Standard is strengthened when a patient authorization is present
- Patient authorizations are only valid if they specify the minimum necessary PHI
Correct answer: A valid patient authorization removes the Minimum Necessary Standard requirement for that disclosure
When a patient has signed a valid HIPAA authorization, the Minimum Necessary Standard does not apply to that disclosure.
Question 3: A health plan auditor reviews claims and requests full treatment records. The provider believes a summary of relevant services would suffice. The Minimum Necessary Standard supports:
- Providing full records because health plans have broad access rights for payment purposes
- Providing only the information that is reasonably necessary to satisfy the auditor's stated purpose (Correct answer)
- Refusing any records request until the plan submits a formal legal demand
- Deferring entirely to the health plan's judgment on what records they need
Correct answer: Providing only the information that is reasonably necessary to satisfy the auditor's stated purpose
Even for payment-related disclosures, covered entities must make reasonable efforts to limit disclosure to what is actually necessary for the specific request.
Question 4: Under HIPAA's Minimum Necessary Standard, which party bears the primary responsibility for implementing appropriate safeguards?
- The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
- The covered entity making the use or disclosure of PHI (Correct answer)
- The patient whose PHI is involved in the transaction
- The business associate receiving the PHI
Correct answer: The covered entity making the use or disclosure of PHI
The covered entity is primarily responsible for implementing policies and procedures that comply with the Minimum Necessary Standard for its own uses and disclosures.
Question 5: A law firm subpoenas a hospital's records department for all PHI related to a malpractice case. Under Minimum Necessary, the hospital should:
- Comply fully with the subpoena without question since it is a legal demand
- Review the scope of the subpoena and provide only the PHI that is relevant and legally required (Correct answer)
- Refuse to release any PHI without a court order signed by a judge
- Release all available PHI to avoid being held in contempt of court
Correct answer: Review the scope of the subpoena and provide only the PHI that is relevant and legally required
Even when responding to legal demands, the Minimum Necessary Standard requires covered entities to provide only the PHI that is actually necessary to comply with the legal request.
Question 6: What is the significance of the phrase 'reasonable reliance' in the context of the Minimum Necessary Standard?
- It allows covered entities to guess what information is needed without verification
- It permits covered entities to rely on a requesting party's stated purpose when determining what PHI to disclose (Correct answer)
- It means the standard can be waived whenever a covered entity deems it unreasonable to apply
- It applies only to disclosures made to government agencies
Correct answer: It permits covered entities to rely on a requesting party's stated purpose when determining what PHI to disclose
HIPAA allows covered entities to reasonably rely on representations made by requestors about the purpose and minimum necessary scope of PHI they are requesting.
Question 7: An employee sends an email containing a patient's full medical history to a colleague who only needed to verify the patient's insurance eligibility. This scenario illustrates:
- Appropriate PHI sharing since both are employees of the same covered entity
- A Minimum Necessary violation because the scope of information exceeded what was needed (Correct answer)
- A permissible internal use since no external party received the PHI
- Compliance as long as the email was sent over an encrypted channel
Correct answer: A Minimum Necessary violation because the scope of information exceeded what was needed
The Minimum Necessary Standard applies to internal uses of PHI, and sharing a full medical history when only eligibility information was needed is a violation.
HIPAA Minimum Necessary Standard 5
A nurse prints an entire patient chart to answer a physician's question about medication dosages.
This action most likely: