As a dental practice owner, there are likely a million things that you worry about on top of a seemingly endless to-do list. When you are grappling with worries such as an increase in competition, lack of growth, difficulty finding qualified employees, and more, there are probably going to be some things that fall by the wayside. Don’t let one of these things be regulatory compliance. The dental industry is subject to fairly extensive regulations on both the state and federal levels. Overlooking the importance of compliance could be a costly mistake to make.
Protect Your Practice from Regulatory Fines
There are a number of state and federal laws that your dental practice will need to remain in compliance with. HIPAA is a big one, especially when it comes to cybersecurity in your practice. State and federal privacy laws require you to protect the confidential information of your patients. Federal laws are becoming even more severe. The HITECH Act is now tasked with enforcing HIPAA violations and the Office of Civil Rights is tasked with investigating data breaches involving over 500 patient records.
Should your practice have a major cybersecurity data breach and your patient data is exposed, you are likely to have a major logistical undertaking on your hands as you notify all relevant parties of the breach. On top of this, there could be serious fines and legal implications for the exposure of patient data which could cost the practice upwards of tens of thousands of dollars. This is why it is so important to protect your practice from cybersecurity threats. It is also important to put a protocol in place to follow in the event of a data breach.
Regarding other regulations applicable to your dental practice, many can be complied with by putting updated policies in place or having contingency plans in place. Other regulations will require consistent monitoring of some areas of your practice. Even still, other regulations will require you to provide regular training to your employees to remain in compliance. In sum, constant vigilance can be your biggest safeguard to remain in compliance with all relevant laws and regulations. Dental practices can be investigated by a multitude of government agencies including the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Consider hiring experts to help your practice remain in compliance. You may not have the time needed to remain diligent about remaining compliant with all relevant regulations, but most practices cannot afford to fall out of compliance. Even a seemingly small violation can cost a practice thousands of dollars. There could even be criminal penalties and permanent damage done to your practice’s reputation.
Dental Law Attorneys
Get trusted legal counsel for your dental practice. At Mahan Dental Law, we know the federal and state regulations that can have big consequences for your dental practice should they be violated in any way. We not only want to see your practice succeed, but we want it to continue to thrive far into the future. Regulatory compliance can be key to this happening. Contact us today.
