HIPAA privacy compliance may be taking back seat to EDI. In 2003, medical providers will face HIPAA deadlines for privacy regulations as well as mandated use of EDI for submitting claims for payment. But for those that can't meet both deadlines, the lesser of two evils might be to let privacy compliance slip and be sure to get electronic transactions implemented in time. The risk analysis is simple, according to Jeremy Pierotti, consultant with Partners Healthcare Consulting. "The chances of being inspected by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid for privacy violations are low, but the chances of not getting paid for submitting a non-standard claim are high," he says. Health Data Management has more.