Yes, Your Answering Service service MUST Comply With HIPAA, Too... Don't Worry, Yours Does!

As you currently know, the April 14, 2003, compliance deadline for the new Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act of 1996 ("HIPAA") governing the privacy of individually identifiable health information ("Privacy Rules") has arrived.

The HIPAA subcommittee of the Association of TeleServices, International ("ATSI"), our national trade association, has reviewed all aspects, impact and responsibilities that affect our industry as they pertain to HIPAA/HHS guidelines and the Privacy Rules. ATSI has contracted with a HIPAA consulting firm, Healthcare Technology Consulting, to provide our industry with a Business Associate Agreement that defines our industry's abilities and limitations yet provides the Covered Entity with the "necessary and reasonable assurances" required for HIPAA compliance. We understand that as a "Business Associate" we must provide you with "satisfactory assurances" that we "will use the information only for the purposes for which it was engaged by the covered entity," and that we "will safeguard the information from misuse, and help the covered entity comply with some of the covered entities duties under the Privacy Rule."

With the endorsement of the ATSI/HIPAA subcommittee, legal counsel, and the Association's HIPAA consulting firm, we are pleased to provide you with the enclosed Business Associate Agreement, used industrywide, for your review and signature. Rest assured that we take HIPAA compliancy seriously and, as your business associate, have invested in both readying and ensuring that our organization meets all HIPAA requirements.

1-800 We Answer messaging service is proud of the fact that we have never had an incident in which the privacy of callers has been compromised and we have every intention of continuing to dedicate all necessary resources to ensure that we remain HIPAA compliant.

Secure Paperless Information Processing (Voice & Data)

Secure Call Record Storage (Voice & Data)

Reasonable Precaution for Electronic Information Transfer (via Phone,

Pager, E-mail, Fax, PDA and Internet)

Enhanced Call Monitoring, Tracking, Data Management & Reporting

Additionally, we are in the final stages of training and certifying that each agent and all personnel handling your calls are HIPAA trained. Our management has participated in HIPAA workshops and has been advised by both legal and operational HIPAA consultants.

We have also elevated our disaster back-up capabilities. We are proud to report that we are more prepared than ever to handle a disaster while ensuring uninterrupted service and protecting the integrity of your data through disaster recovery contingencies.

It's our intention to update our policies and procedures with ATSI's recommendations, and provide our management and staff with ongoing HIPAA training. With this pro-active approach, we can provide you the finest "Satisfactory Assurances" to assist you with your compliancy needs as a Business Associate and a Business Partner.

Your HIPAA Aware Business Partner and Associate 1-800 We Answer Answering Service service, a Member of the Association of TeleServices, International (ATSI)

1-800 We Answer Answering Service service PRICING

1-800 We Answer messaging service pricing is inclusive of your choice of message delivery. Whether you choose to fax, email, or alpha-page, you pay only one low fee. If we call a protocol list of individual numeric pagers, cell phones or landlines, you will only be charged an additional .50 cents per call. 1-800 We Answer messaging service can also supply you with a free front-end voice mail system to screen your calls, allowing non-urgent callers to leave a voice mail while urgent or emergency callers are put through to our live telephone representatives. This service is free of charge and has the advantage of helping you keep costs to a minimum. You will only be charged for the calls handled by a live operator.

Answering Service services frequently don't publish their rates.
They ask you personal business questions and set your rate based on how much they think you can afford or are willing to pay. They justify these high rates by promising a quality service, using ambiguous terminology such as "transaction time" or "unit or screen time". Be wary of these terms. At 1-800 We Answer messaging service, we give you excellent service and low published rates.