The HHS Office for Civil Rights has imposed a $70,000 civil monetary penalty on Gums Dental Care for failing to provide timely access to patient records.
Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced a $70,000 civil monetary penalty against Gums Dental Care, LLC, a solo dental practice in Maryland that provides family dental care. This penalty resulted from an investigation based on a complaint that Gums Dental Care failed to provide a patient with timely access to their medical records. According to the HIPAA Privacy Rule’s right of access provisions, individuals or their personal representatives must have timely access to their health information (within 30 days, with a possible one-time 30-day extension) for a reasonable, cost-based fee. “OCR [...]