The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has announced its first HIPAA fines of 2022 – Two enforcement actions to resolve HIPAA Right of Access violations and two for impermissible PHI disclosures. No financial penalties were...
The answer to the question who does HIPAA apply to is most often generalized as health plans, health care clearinghouses, and health care providers along with their Business Associates. Some sources also include contractors who provide services to Business Associates....
The actual answer to the question why was HIPAA created may surprise many people who believe the Act´s sole purpose was to safeguard Protected Health Information (PHI). Indeed, the Privacy and Security Rules developed to protect PHI were only by-products of the Act´s...
The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) breach portal shows 2021 was a record year for healthcare industry data breaches, with 714 breaches of protected health information reported to OCR for 2021. The breach reports do not show the...
The question why is HIPAA important can have multiple answers depending on whether you are a healthcare organization, a healthcare professional, or a patient. The answers to the question why is HIPAA important can also help explain why HIPAA compliance is important....
HHS’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) Director Lisa J. Pino is urging HIPAA-regulated entities to improve their cybersecurity posture in 2022 following a year of increased hacking activity and data breaches. There are no indications that the hacking attempts will...
HIPAA certification training for employees of HIPAA-covered entities or vendors that provide products or services to the healthcare industry has several advantages. In this post, we explain the benefits of HIPAA certification, but first it is important to explain what...
