Chair's Column
By Vickie Yates Brown, Frost Brown Todd LLC, Louisville, KY

It’s June! And, of course, that means it is time for the annual ABA Health Law Section Physician-Legal Issues Conference. This is a one day live program held each year in Chicago to coincide with the American Medical Association (“AMA”) annual meeting. This year it will be held on Thursday, June 11. The program focuses on the most relevant issues of significance facing physicians and their lawyers. This conference is the final live program remaining during this bar year. It does not seem possible that we could already be winding up live programming for the year. The Section hosts three live programs – in addition to Physician –Legal Issues, the Section also produces the Washington Healthcare Summit held in the fall and the Emerging Issues program held in February.

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HITECH Implications for Business Associate Agreements: What Should You Do and When Should You Do It?
By Rachel Nosowsky, Esq., Miller Canfield Paddock & Stone PLC, Ann Arbor, MI

Title XIII of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (“ARRA”), called the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (“HITECH”) Act, codifies and expands on many of the requirements promulgated by the Department of Health & Human Services (“DHHS”) pursuant to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”) to protect the privacy and security of protected health information (“ PHI”). For example, HITECH for the first time directly regulates business associates – defined to include persons who, on behalf of a covered entity (but other than as members of the covered entity’s workforce), perform or assist in performing a function or activity that involves the use or disclosure of individually identifiable health information, or that otherwise is regulated by HIPAA.

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Handle With Care: Implications of Recent FTC Activity to Online Marketing of Health-Related Products and Service
By Mark Paulding, Hogan & Hartson, Attorney, Washington, D.C.

For more than a decade advertisers have been drawn to the Internet by, among other things, the wealth of behavioral information that can be gleaned from Internet users. Access to this information is made possible by the use of technologies, such as cookies and web beacons, by advertising networks to track the movements of an Internet user across multiple websites over extended periods of time. The data collected can be used to populate profiles of consumer behavior, interests, and demographics. These profiles, in turn, are used to target marketing messages to consumers. This practice, sometimes referred to as online behavioral advertising, has become a source of increasing concern among consumer advocates and lawmakers.

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Electronic Medical Records: What are some of the Practical Issues Lawyers Should be Aware of During Discovery and Litigation?
By Ralph C. Losey, Esquire, Akerman Senterfitt, Orlando, FL
and Kristen A. Foltz, Esquire, Akerman Senterfitt, Tampa, FL

The health care industry is going electronic, dramatically impacting both hospitals and lawyers alike. The switch to electronic medical records allows for easier and faster charting, but practical problems arise when systems crash or fail to update patient records in real time. Problems also arise in the integration of paper records into the various electronic databases and bridging the awkward hybrid stage when both paper and electronic records must be reviewed. These practical problems can in turn general legal problems for health care attorneys, particularly litigators, because they impact the effective and efficient discovery of patient medical records.

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eHealth, Privacy & Security Interest Group

The eHealth, Privacy & Security Interest Group focuses on cutting edge issues dealing with technology and privacy as they relate to healthcare. Substantive topics of interest to committee members include health information privacy and security, electronic communications, electronic transactions and telehealth. The Interest Group will seek to encourage discussion and debate on emerging legal issues in these areas.

The IG is led by Chair Marc D. Goldstone, Franklin, TN and Vice-Chairs W. Andrew H. Gantt III, Latham & Watkins LLP, Washington, DC; Melissa L. Markey, Hall, Render, Killian, Heath & Lyman, Troy, Michigan; R. Hal McCard, Jr., Community Health Systems, Franklin, TN and Brad Rostolsky, Reed Smith LLP, Philadelphia, PA.

If you would like to join the Interest Group, continue by clicking the following link: Health Law Section IG Sign-up Form.

ABA eSource Editorial Board

The ABA Health eSource Editorial Board is led by Chair Lisa Genecov, Locke Lord Bissell and Liddell LLP, Dallas, TX and editorial board members Michael E. Clark, Hamel Bowers & Clark LLP, Houston, TX; Adrienne Dresevic, The Health Law Partners, PC, Southfield, MI; Marla Durben Hirsch, Potomac, MD and Conrad Meyer, Chaffe McCall, LLP, New Orleans, LA.