Health Innovation

The FTC is the New Sheriff in Town

By Mike Semel – Don’t believe “We’re from the government and we are here to help you.” After a data breach in 2006 the FTC settled with ChoicePoint for $ 10 million and a 20-year monitored compliance program. Twenty-Years! In 2012 a company that had a HIPAA data breach was forced out of the state for two years by the Minnesota Attorney General.

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HIPAA Q&A on Risk Analysis

By Steve Spearman – Performing a risk analysis is the cornerstone of HIPAA compliance, so it’s important to understand the regulations that require risk analysis, as well as how to conform to these rules. This week’s Q&A with Steve Spearman, focuses on understanding the essentials of risk analysis.


$750,000 HIPAA Fine Offers Valuable Lessons

By Art Gross – On September 2, 2015 The HHS Office of Civil Rights (OCR) issued a press release announcing a $750,000 HIPAA settlement with Cancer Care Group, P.C. This large fine offers some very important lessons. Let’s take a closer look:


OpenFDA Makes Medical Device-Related Data Easier to Access and Use

By Taha Kass-Hout, Roselie A. Bright & Ann Ferriter – OpenFDA is releasing information on medical devices that could spur innovation and advance scientific research. OpenFDA’s Application Programming Interface (API) expands on the previous openFDA resources concerning medical device-related adverse events and recalls by incorporating information from the medical device product life cycle.



Breaches, Breaches, Everywhere

By Matt Fisher – It often seems as though a day does not go by without the report of a new breach of healthcare data. Examples of breaches include loss of unencrypted devices (whether laptops, flash drives or other devices), usage of non-secure services, inattention to paper records, employee snooping, and more.