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ONC Commissioned Medical Identity Theft Assessment

In May 2008, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) awarded an approximately $450,000 contract to Booz Allen Hamilton to assess and evaluate the scope of the medical identity theft problem in the U.S.

Medical Identity Theft

Medical identity theft is a specific type of identity theft which occurs when a person uses someone else's personal health identifiable information, such as insurance information, Social Security Number, health care file, or medical records, without the individual's knowledge or consent to obtain medical goods or services, or to submit false claims for medical services. There is limited information available about the scope, depth, and breadth of medical identity theft.

Dr. Robert Kolodner, National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, has noted that medical identity theft stories are being documented at an increasing rate, bringing to light serious financial, fraud, and patient care issues. ONC recognizes that health IT is an important tool to combat the threat of medical identity theft. We are seeking input from the public and other government agencies to better understand how health IT can be utilized to prevent and detect medical identity theft as well as build consumer trust in electronic health information exchange. ONC believes it is imperative to obtain a more comprehensive understanding of this issue from a variety of perspectives, and to create an open forum for dialogue to work proactively to address medical identity theft.

An Assessment in Three Phases

Three specific deliverables corresponding with each of three phases will result from this assessment.

  1. A comprehensive Environmental Scan of the medical identity theft problem in the U.S particularly focusing on the intersection of Health IT.
    A literature review and documentary research in addition to interviews will be conducted to explore the scope and trends of medical identity theft. This report will:

    1. Identify a comprehensive list of stakeholders who are affected by medical identity theft and summarize their activities;
    2. Identify issues of medical identity theft, quantify its impact on the health care industry, and identify gaps where there are no reliable measures; and
    3. Serve as a baseline for developing recommendations for the prevention, detection, and remediation of medical identity theft

  2. A one-day Town Hall meeting to enable health care experts to share knowledge and experience of medical identity theft and how health IT can be utilized to prevent and detect medical identity theft.

    MARK YOUR CALENDAR…

    Medical Identity Theft Town Hall
    Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,
    Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology

    Date:

    October 15th, 2008
    8:30 AM-4:30 PM

     

    Location:

    Federal Trade Commission
    Conference Center
    601 New Jersey Avenue, NW
    Washington, D.C.

     

    RSVP:

    MedIDTheftTownHall@hhs.gov and indicate that you are planning to attend in person or by webcast.

    The Town Hall’s focus will consider how medical identity theft should be addressed in a health information technology (health IT) environment. Health care stakeholders from the public and private sectors will share their knowledge and experience and gain insights into trends and future developments.

    As part of ONC’s mission to assure that electronic health information exchange is secure, this Town hall is designed to increase understanding of the medical identity theft landscape. Public discussion during the Town Hall will feed into and support potential recommendations for the prevention, detection, and remediation of this form of identity theft, leveraging health IT and best practices, and to foster ongoing collaboration and communication.

    Please visit http://www.hhs.gov/healthit in the coming weeks to learn more about the speakers and topics for the Town Hall.

  3. A final report and roadmap.
    The report and roadmap summarizing health IT and medical identity theft issues raised at the town hall will be released in Winter 2008 - 2009 and will set forth possible next steps for the Federal government and other stakeholders in order to work toward prevention, detection, and remediation of medical identify theft.


Medical Identity Theft Town Hall Plans Underway;
Please RSVP

To learn more, visit ONC Commissioned Medical Identity Theft Assessment.

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2008-2012

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