Report on Patient Privacy 22, no. 5 (May, 2022) -
Compared to other agencies, the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is a little fish in the big federal pond, but it has an outsize effect on HIPAA covered entities (CEs) and...more
5/6/2022
/ Business Associates ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Corrective Action Plans (CAPs) ,
Covered Entities ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fines ,
Funding ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HIPAA Violations ,
HITECH Act ,
Injunctive Relief ,
OCR ,
PHI ,
Popular ,
Privacy Laws
Report on Patient Privacy 22, no. 3 (March, 2022) -
Typically a “legacy” describes the lasting impact of an influential person or movement, most often in a positive sense. Not so with medical devices. When legacy is applied...more
3/14/2022
/ Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Threats ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Health Technology ,
Hospitals ,
Incident Response Plans ,
Medical Devices ,
PHI ,
Physicians ,
Popular
Report on Patient Privacy 22, no. 2 (February, 2022) -
The new national health information network calls for a number of privacy and security safeguards and standards that, in some instances, exceed what HIPAA covered...more
2/14/2022
/ Audits ,
Business Associates ,
Certifications ,
Covered Entities ,
Cyber Incident Reporting ,
Cyber Insurance ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Security ,
Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Mobile Apps ,
Notification Requirements ,
PHI ,
Popular
Issue a final rule revising the privacy regulation and write guidance on the information blocking rule. Formalize the fledgling audit program required by Congress more than 10 years ago. Engage with providers and other...more
8/13/2021
/ 21st Century Cures Act ,
Audits ,
Biden Administration ,
Business Associates ,
Covered Entities ,
Data Privacy ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HIPAA Breach ,
HIPAA Violations ,
Information Blocking Rules ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
OCR ,
Ransomware
Report on Patient Privacy 21, no. 7 (July, 2021) -
...These heartfelt comments are among those submitted to the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) in response to its January notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM), which...more
7/9/2021
/ Caregivers ,
Covered Entities ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HIPAA Privacy Rule ,
Mental Health ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
OCR ,
PHI ,
Physicians ,
Public Comment ,
Substance Abuse
Report on Patient Privacy 21, no. 6 (June 2021) -
...So begins the provocative lawsuit filed against Methodist Hospital System in Houston by 117 employees who do not want to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Despite the...more
6/11/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Electronic Medical Records ,
Employee Incentive Plans ,
Employee Privacy Rights ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Rights ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Health and Safety ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare Workers ,
HIPAA Violations ,
Hospitals ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
Medical Records ,
Physicians ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
Report on Patient Privacy 21, no. 5 (May 2021) -
Given the hundreds of thousands of HIPAA covered entities (CEs) and business associates (BAs) and the two dozen or so enforcement actions the HHS Office for Civil Rights...more
5/7/2021
/ Business Associates ,
Cooperation ,
Covered Entities ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Security ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Failure to Notify ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HIPAA Privacy Rule ,
Investigations ,
OCR ,
PHI ,
Popular
Report on Patient Privacy 21, no. 3 (March 2021) -
Sometime during the fall, a worker for a subcontractor of Humana Inc. decided to share actual member information from medical records via a Google document with people he...more
3/25/2021
/ Business Associates ,
Business Associates Agreement (BAA) ,
Compliance ,
Covered Entities ,
Data Breach ,
Data Protection ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Medical Records ,
Notice Requirements ,
OCR ,
Patient Privacy Rights ,
PHI ,
Subcontractors
Report on Patient Privacy 20, no. 10 (October 2020) -
September was quite the month for enforcement actions by the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR). The agency announced eight settlements totaling more than $10 million....more
10/16/2020
/ Business Associates ,
Compliance ,
Corrective Action Plans (CAPs) ,
Covered Entities ,
Data Breach ,
De-Identified Protected Health Information ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) ,
Hackers ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
OCR ,
PHI ,
Settlement
Report on Patient Privacy 20, no. 9 (September 2020) -
The fact that people are the weakest link in compliance is a truism in the privacy and security world. But just how weak is this link, and how likely is it that...more
9/15/2020
/ Compliance ,
Data Security ,
Employee Misconduct ,
Government Studies ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare Workers ,
HIPAA Violations ,
Hospitals ,
Insurance Agents ,
Medical Records ,
Nurses ,
Patient Privacy Rights ,
Physicians
Report on Patient Privacy 20, no. 6 (June 2020):
Being a health care provider in the midst of a pandemic is complicated enough, between offering telehealth services, perhaps for the first time, and helping workers continue...more
6/15/2020
/ Business Associates ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Entities ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Data-Sharing ,
Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare Workers ,
OCR ,
Patient Privacy Rights ,
PHI
Report on Patient Privacy 20, no. 4 (April 2020)
In new guidance, the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has authorized hospitals and other covered entities (CEs) that may be faced with demands from first responders and law...more
4/14/2020
/ Compliance ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Entities ,
First Responders ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Law Enforcement ,
OCR ,
Patient Privacy Rights ,
PHI ,
Public Health ,
Public Safety
Report on Patient Privacy 20, no. 2 (February 2020) -
The year is still young, but the federal government has announced a potentially far-reaching privacy effort that should catch HIPAA compliance officers’ attention. And...more
2/12/2020
/ Cybersecurity ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
EHR ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
NIST ,
OCR ,
OMB ,
ONC ,
Patient Access ,
Patient Privacy Rights ,
Public Comment
Report on Patient Privacy 20, no. 1 (January 2020) -
In the waning days of 2019, the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) didn’t halt the HIPAA enforcement momentum it had built up during the last quarter of the year, dinging...more
1/13/2020
/ Ambulance Providers ,
Business Associates ,
Compliance ,
Corrective Action Plans (CAPs) ,
Corrective Actions ,
Covered Entities ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Encryption ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HIPAA Breach ,
HIPAA Security Rule ,
OCR ,
PHI ,
Security Risk Assessments ,
Settlement
Report on Research Compliance 17, no. 1 (January 2020) -
Ah, those pesky residents. If you’re a teaching hospital, you can’t live without them, right? But sometimes living with them is mighty costly, as the University of...more
12/19/2019
/ Administrative Appeals ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Covered Entities ,
Data Breach ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) ,
Encryption ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HIPAA Violations ,
Laptop Computers ,
Medical Research ,
Medical Residents ,
OCR ,
PHI ,
Settlement ,
Teaching Hospitals