HHS OCR Annual Report to Congress
HHS Office for Civil Rights delivers annual reports to Congress on HIPAA Compliance and Breaches of Unsecured Protected Health Information.
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A Tale of Two Breach Notification Rules
By Matt Fisher – The early days of February 2023 saw two very different settlements announced related to healthcare data breaches. One arguably follows a well-known course and the other could be a sign of things to come.
Right of Access: Ongoing Focus
By Matt Fisher – An individual’s right of access to protected health information granted by HIPAA remains both an area of concern and focus. The tension is especially important given the increasing desire of individuals to obtain information about themselves and the expanding…
HIPAA Settlement on Repeat
By Matt Fisher – Stop if you’ve heard this story before: a dental practice was unhappy with patient reviews left on Yelp, so responded. In responding, the practice disclosed patient information including names and diagnoses. That is the basic outline of the latest settlement announced by the OCR to resolve an alleged HIPAA violation.
HHS OCR Issues HIPAA Requirements Bulletin
The OCR at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued a bulletin to highlight the obligations of HIPAA on covered entities and business associates under the HIPAA Privacy, Security, and Breach Notification Rules when using online tracking technologies.
Security Incident Guideline Reminder
By Art Gross – The HIPAA Security Rule includes requirements for a security incident response plan that are important to know especially as the number of reported data breaches continues to rise.
Cybersecurity Reports and Resources
October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month. We have rounded up some reports, guides, and tool kits to help you #BeCyberSmart.
Garbage Can Cause HIPAA Issues
By Matt Fisher – Throwing out the trash is an everyday occurrence whether in personal or business life. However, when it comes to healthcare organizations, it is necessary to think about what trash goes where. The consideration goes beyond the difference between regular waste and hazardous medical waste.
HIPAA Right to Access Enforcement
By Art Gross – The Office for Civil Rights isn’t offering leniency just because you’re a small business. Action will be taken, despite the impact that a HIPAA fine can have on this sector of healthcare. And as eleven recent investigations prove the point, many of those were small practices.