Commun ty Matters Rolla Presbyterian Manor
January 2015
HIPAA 101 A simple question doesn’t always have a simple answer. “Why did my friend go to the hospital?” seems to be a simple question, but the answer is blocked by a federal law. While most think of the law as the protector of medical records, privacy isn’t even in its name. We call it HIPAA (pronounced HIP-pah), but the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 also has been known as the Kassebaum-Kennedy Act or Kennedy-Kassebaum Act. Sen. Nancy Landon Kassebaum, R-Kan., was a leading sponsor of the bill, along with Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass. The official explanation is: “An Act To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to improve portability and continuity of health insurance coverage in the group and individual markets, to combat waste, fraud, and abuse in health insurance and health care delivery, to promote the use of medical savings accounts, to improve access to long-term care services and coverage, to simplify the administration of health insurance, and for other purposes.” The main intent was that the health industry would save money by computerizing paper records. That led to concerns over privacy, which led to new privacy regulations. HIPPA, continued on page 2
From left, Lori and Joe Gillardi play cards, one of the many activities they enjoy at Rolla Presbyterian Manor.
Cards on the table When it comes to life as residents, Joe and Lori Gillardi are ‘all in’ From their first days at Rolla Presbyterian Manor, Joe and Lori Gillardi have sampled just about every activity on the schedule, from morning devotions to music programs. Then, they started one of their own. The Gillardis, who moved in May from St. Peters, Mo., decided to invite neighbors to join them in a card game a few nights a week. They had been playing one of their favorite games, double solitaire, during the weekly Table Games activity and started teaching other players how to do it. “They’re always motivating us to do different things here, and the staff is always doing everything for us” in planning activities, Gillardi said. “I just wanted to do something for somebody else. Everybody here has been so nice; it’s like family.” The evening card game now draws a dozen or more players. They start right after dinner and play until about 10 p.m., he said. At first, Gillardi said, he had to do a lot of recruiting. Now, other residents look for him to ask when the next game is. CARDS, continued on page 4