Updates to Statute 1557 that Healthcare Providers Need to Know
Privacy and Healthcare Business Associates with Isabella Porter
State Law Privacy Video Series | Healthcare Entities and Health Data
Gerry Blass on Healthcare Vendor Risk Management
AGG Talks: Technology - In the Balance: Interoperability and Security
Is Your Practice's Marketing HIPAA Compliant?
Relaxed HIPAA Restrictions For Providers Using Telehealth
Compliance Perspectives: Permissible Disclosures under HIPAA, Especially in the Time of COVID-19
Polsinelli Podcasts - Confusion to Clarity on the Future of the 340B Program
Polsinelli Podcast - HIPAA Changes Overview
Health care organizations are under pressure to shore up their cybersecurity response efforts. Much of this pressure is coming from the US Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR), which has made...more
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is required by law to perform periodic audits of covered entities and business associates to ensure their compliance with HIPAA Security Rule...more
Americans hear about cybersecurity incidents on a frequent basis. As the adage goes, it is not a matter of “if” a breach or security hack occurs; it is a matter of “when.”...more
Let’s review for a moment. It’s not a HIPAA violation to be a victim of ransomware. It’s not a HIPAA violation to pay a ransom. It’s up to the covered entity (CE) to determine if a security or privacy incident is a...more
Earlier this year, a cyberattack on a leading healthcare claims processing provider had an unprecedented impact on patients and healthcare providers across the country. While group health plans were not directly targeted in...more
On Feb. 21, 2024, the ransomware hacker group ALPHV, otherwise known as "BlackCat," disabled Change Healthcare's nationwide healthcare billing and information systems and demanded a ransom to unlock them....more
Healthcare data breaches are occurring more frequently and on larger scales than ever before – and while you defend against cyberattacks and other external threats, make sure you do not overlook the critical role your...more
On February 14, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued its annual reports to Congress detailing its actions to enforce the privacy, security, and breach notification...more
Yesterday, March 27, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency published the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking under the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act of 2022. It is important to note...more
Late last year, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued its first HIPAA settlement agreement involving a ransomware attack. In the press release announcing the settlement, HHS stated that they began...more
On Oct. 31, 2023, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced it had settled with Doctors’ Management Services Inc. (DMS) over a self-reported ransomware attack that occurred in...more
The Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act (CIRCIA), was passed as part of the consolidated Budget Act for 2022, which also included the telehealth provisions. The definition of “covered entity” in the...more
Echoing other agencies in recent weeks, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued an alert sharing resources to address and protect institutions against the recent influx of...more
HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR)’s April 3, 2019 cybersecurity newsletter highlights one of the more challenging cybersecurity vulnerabilities faced by covered entities and business associates. OCR reminds covered entities...more
On May 29, 2018, Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper signed changes to Colorado law that significantly increase potential data breach burdens and financial penalties on entities operating in Colorado.1 Beginning September 1,...more
HHS has published a very brief guide, in the form of a checklist, to explain the steps for a HIPAA covered entity or business associate to take in response to a cyber related security incident. You can access the checklist at...more
On June 9, 2017, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of Civil Rights (OCR) released a cyber-attack “Quick Response” checklist (the Checklist) for the benefit of HIPAA covered entities and business...more
OCR released a simple checklist and infographic last week to assist Covered Entities and Business Associates with responding to potential cyber attacks. As cybersecurity remains a pressing concern for health care entities,...more
The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has announced that the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass) has agreed to settle an investigation against it as a result of a malware infection for $650,000, along with implementing a...more
On November 28, 2016, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued an Alert to its listservs that a phishing email is being circulated on “mock HHS Departmental letterhead under the signature of OCR”s Director, Jocelyn Samuels”...more
New York state has proposed a new regulation — to go into effect January 1, 2017 — that would require banks, insurance companies and other financial services institutions regulated by the New York State Department of...more
The Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”) has issued new guidance in connection with an increase of malicious cyberattacks, namely ransomware attacks on healthcare organization’s computer systems. Ransomware is a defined by HHS as a...more
Ransomware attacks at hospitals and other healthcare facilities have dramatically increased over the last several years, putting healthcare providers in the uncomfortable position of having to consider paying thousands of...more
Ransomware is malicious software that denies access to data, usually by encrypting the data with a private encryption key that is only provided once a ransom is paid. Sometimes the ransomware will actually destroy, steal, or...more
Ransomware attacks appear to be increasing in frequency as well as severity. Ransomware is malicious software that encrypts data until a ransom is paid to the hacker. For healthcare providers, the inability to access...more