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24 J. Health Care L. & Pol'y 139 (2021)
What Your Compliance Officer Is - And Is Not

handle is hein.journals/hclwpo24 and id is 140 raw text is: WHAT YOUR COMPLIANCE OFFICER IS - AND IS NOT BARRY S. HERRIN, FAHIMA, FHIMSS, FACHE, ESQ.T In the strange way that thoughts connect and evolve, an experience I had on October 11, 2019 as a panelist for the University of Maryland Carey Law's In-House Counsel Roundtable' just came back to mind as I read an online post from one of those accounting firms that sounds like people really wanting to be lawyers who are trapped in the license of accountants. Everyone is giving advice on what to do during and after our experience with COVID-19, and you have already heard from me on this point.2 However, this particular measure of information is meant to address a disturbing trend highlighted in both my panel experience and in the accounting firm post, which is the misunderstanding of the separate roles of the compliance officer and counsel, and-of more immediate concern-the unhelpful (and in some cases dangerous) broadening of the role of the compliance officer into an all-laws inspector general for the healthcare enterprise. THE MODERN ORIGIN OF THE HEALTHCARE COMPLIANCE OFFICER In guidance issued in 19983 by the Office of Inspector General (OIG) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the OIG strongly suggested that effective internal controls that promote adherence to applicable © 2021 Barry S. Herrin tMr. Herrin is the Founder of Herrin Health Law, P.C., a boutique law practice dedicated to the needs of health care providers. He received his bachelor's and law degrees from Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia, where he graduated each time with honors and as a member of the Law Review. He is admitted to the bars of the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina. Mr. Herrin is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, a Fellow of the American Health Information Management Association, and a Fellow of the Healthcare Information Management and Systems Society. He also holds a Certificate in Cyber Security from the Georgia Institute of Technology. Contact him at barry.herrin@herrinhealthlaw.com. 1. Further details and information regarding this event can be found at: Hot Topics for In-House Counsel at Health Care Institutions, UNIV. OF MD. FRANCIS KING CAREY SCH. L., (Oct. 11, 2019), https://www.law.umaryland.edu/Programs-and-Impact/Health-Law/Events/AHLA/. 2. Barry Herrin, Teleworking Due to COVID-19? Protect PHI From Security Threats, Starting with this Policy, HERRIN HEALTH L., https://herrinhealthlaw.com/teleworking-due-to-covid-19-protect- phi-from-security-threats-with-this-policy/ (last visited Feb. 3, 2021). 3. 63 Fed. Reg. 8987 (Feb. 23, 1998), as supplemented by 70 Fed. Reg. 4858 (Jan. 31, 2005). 139

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