Red Flag Rule

[haha]

Ha,

You aren't mistaken -- the law has indeed been changing in Washington State. In 2005 you had to show actual damage (theft, or personal data stolen) to get a freeze on your credit reports. My husband and I were victims of identify theft before 2005 and debated what to do should we become "eligible" for a credit freeze under the new 2005 laws.

See this 2005 announcement extolling this improvement: Credit Report Security Freeze Can Help Identity Theft Victims. Further improvements which you described in your email were enacted in subsequent years (2008 I think).

--Linney

Thanks, Linney. I will research this further and may do it. Nothing I hate quite as much as being victimized. Goes back a long way, in my life and also the lives of my hillbilly ancestors.

Ha

 

[calmloki]

....
I called someone in the financial fraud division at my old employer and got the scoop. In a word, from the pros - we're all "f***ed". I really want to know how a rule that says identification must be checked turns into a policy of keeping copies of identification documents. .....

If the rule says ID must be checked how does the doctor's office prove they were doing so to some LEO who asks for proof? What carries more weight - a statement from Rhonda the Receptionist attesting to her constant checking, assuming she didn't quit and move to Rwanda six years ago, or a copy of Leo the patient's DL. Aren't you the guy who mentioned that scraps of paper carry great weight evidence-wise?

Maybe video of all patients checking in and showing ID, but too low-res to show the ID specifics...

I just go along, but my gal is more the rabble rouser and, says, one, that she hates rules, and two, that it all comes down to too many people, or perception of too many if you wish to cavail.
Medical Historian Examines NIMH Experiments in Crowding - The NIH Record -July 25, 2008

 

[Martha]

Leo asked why the copying when just looking will satisfy the law. The reason is simple, they want to be able to prove they looked. When I last did a bank financing transaction it copied the licenses for their file. The lenders said that the compliance department required it.

The law needs work, it is silly to have it apply to this kind of credit. Personally, if I was a doctors office I would have a policy to check the license and have a little box in my patient's file showing it was checked.

I am thinking about a freeze on my credit but I'd have to pay a fee. Most states now allow a freeze to anyone, but fees are often charged if there was no ID theft.

 

[Leonidas]

If the rule says ID must be checked how does the doctor's office prove they were doing so to some LEO who asks for proof? What carries more weight - a statement from Rhonda the Receptionist attesting to her constant checking, assuming she didn't quit and move to Rwanda six years ago, or a copy of Leo the patient's DL. Aren't you the guy who mentioned that scraps of paper carry great weight evidence-wise?

Maybe video of all patients checking in and showing ID, but too low-res to show the ID specifics...

Without re-digging for the law again, what is says in summary is that credit institutions are required to have procedures in place to look for indicators (red flags) of identity theft. It does go into detail about what kind of procedures they consider adequate. If I remember correctly it was to have new patients show their identification, insurance card, and then compare the photo to the person and the names and address on the cards to what is given by the patient. If the patient supplies an address that is different they should be asked to bring something like a utility bill that has the correct name with the new address. They should also look for obvious signs of alteration to the identity documents.

Recently I went to the endodontist and a maxillofacial surgeon, and had to show my ID at both places. They looked at my DL and then used a webcam to take my photo and attach it to my file. They did not scan my DL. Every time they pull up my file there will be my smiling face beaming back at them. ID easily checked at every visit by comparing me to the photo.

 

[WhoDaresWins]

I think the main reason for the checking and photocopying of DL, the taking of photos for the file, is to curtail insurance fraud. Apparently is not unheard of for uninsured or underinsured people to "borrow" cards from friends and family and receive medical goods and services in this way. Medical offices that don't know you likely would be liable in some way for this fraud if they do not verify identity. I have been told when opening a new bank account that the reason for photocopying the DL is a homeland security reg.