Endocrine Insider
August 6, 2009
(See Full Issue)

As a result of advocacy efforts by medical societies including The Endocrine Society, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has delayed the implementation date for compliance with the Red Flags Rule until November 1, 2009. This is the third implementation delay that the FTC has announced. Originally slated to begin November 1, 2008, compliance was first pushed back to May 1, 2009, and again to August 1, 2009. The latest delay was announced last week. The Red Flags Rule requires certain entities to implement written identity theft prevention and detection programs to protect consumers from identity theft. The rule requires protection of credit card information and tax identification numbers, such as social security numbers, and applies to all “creditors.” According to the FTC, physicians who accept insurance or allow payment plans are considered to be creditors.

The American Medical Association (AMA),  The Endocrine Society, and other medical specialty societies have expressed their dissent that the Red Flags Rule should apply to physicians and have presented the argument that physicians are not, in fact, creditors. Both the AMA and the FTC have developed resources on compliance with the rule and simple identity theft prevention programs that can be incorporated into current HIPAA security and privacy policies. Physician resources are available at:

http://www.ftc.gov/redflagsrule

http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/no-index/physician-resources/red-flags-rule.shtml