HIPAANews

Patrick Kennedy is a highly accomplished journalist and editor with nearly two decades of experience in the field. With expertise in writing and editing content, Patrick has made significant contributions to various publications and organizations. Over the course of his career, Patrick has successfully managed teams of writers, overseeing the production of high-quality content and ensuring its adherence to professional standards. His exceptional leadership skills, combined with his deep understanding of journalistic principles, have allowed him to create cohesive and engaging narratives that resonate with readers. A notable area of specialization for Patrick lies in compliance, particularly in relation to HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act). He has authored numerous articles delving into the complexities of compliance and its implications for various industries. Patrick's comprehensive understanding of HIPAA regulations has positioned him as a go-to expert, sought after for his insights and expertise in this field. Patrick's bachelors degree is from the University of Limerick and his master's degree in journalism is from Dublin City University. You can contact Patrick through his LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pkkennedy/

How Much Does HIPAA Non-Compliance Cost?

How Much Does HIPAA Non-Compliance Cost?

The Security Rule of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) reqiores that all covered bodies put in place the appropriate administrative, physical and technical safeguards to keep PHI secure. Failure to adopt those basic minimum...
HIPAA Data Breach: How to Calculate Costs

HIPAA Data Breach: How to Calculate Costs

Calculating the cost of a HIPAA data violation is not a simple process, at least not until a number of years after a data breach happened. Corrective actions must be taken following a data breach, and the cost of notification and damage mitigation can escalate....
OCR Indicates Major Increase in HIPAA Audits

OCR Indicates Major Increase in HIPAA Audits

The second round of HIPAA compliance audits have yet to commence, the last round was  in 2012, but they are supposedly returning and will be bigger and bolder than before. The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) indicated to...
Aventura Hospital Damages Lawsuit Filed

Aventura Hospital Damages Lawsuit Filed

The Aventura HIPAA breach, discovered in June 2014, has lead to a lawsuit being filed by a patient of the hospital, according to a Courthouse News Service report. The lawsuit was taken by Aventura patient, Kellie Lynn Case, in the Miami Federal Court. She is claiming...
2014 HIPAA Breach Reporting Deadline Approaches

2014 HIPAA Breach Reporting Deadline Approaches

The deadline for making security breaches, affecting less than 500 people, from 2014 known is coming in the next three weeks. Any healthcare supplier or other covered entity that has not filed all 2014 breach reports must ensure they have all beensubmitted – and are...
California: Privacy Protection Strengthened

California: Privacy Protection Strengthened

On Tuesday 30th September, California Governor Edmund Brown signed off on new legislation to improve the level of privacy protection for citizens of California. The new set of bills introduced a number of amendments to the legislation which included more transparent...
Case Against Advocate Health Dismissed

Case Against Advocate Health Dismissed

An Illinois a class action lawsuit that arose from the Massive HIPAA breach affecting the healthcare provider last August has been thrown out by circuit court in Kane County. The incident possibly exposed the data of almost 4 million patients when four unencrypted...
HHS HIPAA Risk Assessment Tool Released

HHS HIPAA Risk Assessment Tool Released

Carrying out an in depth risk assessment is a requirement under the HIPAA Security Rule; however it can be a complex process calling for all potential security weaknesses to be identified. The process can be a major task for any organization, especially when the...
Windows XP Now in Breach HIPAA Regulations

Windows XP Now in Breach HIPAA Regulations

Windows XP will no longer be HIPAA or meaningful use compliant in six weeks on some or all workstations,  so there is a deadline of April 8 for organizations to migrate to a new OS as Windows XP of face possible penalties for breaching HIPAA. Any organization using...
HIPAA Security Breach at Riverside Health

HIPAA Security Breach at Riverside Health

A new HIPAA security breach has been discovered in Virginia involving 919 patients from the Riverside Health System which runs five hospitals in the Southeast Virginia area. The data violation did not involve tens of thousands of patients although the security breach...
Surge in HIPAA Data Breaches likely in 2014

Surge in HIPAA Data Breaches likely in 2014

Experian credit bureau has released a new report that predicts that 2014 will see a surge in  data breaches. The report also foresees that the healthcare industry will most targeted. The report says that the reason healthcare is so attractive to hackers is the sheer...
Home Diabetes Test Causes Data Issue

Home Diabetes Test Causes Data Issue

On 26th September, Lori Stein attended Cotton-O’Neil Diabetes and Endocrinology Center in Topeka and met with an endocrinologist for an appointment. Lori Stein´s checkup was standard in order to monitor her diabetes, but during her consultation she inquired if she...
HIPAA Omnibus Rule Now Legally Binding

HIPAA Omnibus Rule Now Legally Binding

The HIPAA Omnibus Rule was passed in March this year, although the OCR gave covered bodies a grace period in which to bring their organizations strategies and procedures up to date with the new regulations. The Omnibus Rule amended HIPAA to cover Business Associates...
Nurses Flock to BYOD Schemes

Nurses Flock to BYOD Schemes

In a recent report from Spyglass Consulting, it is not just doctors who are signing up to medical BYOD schemes; nurses too are now registering and 69% of those polled said they bring their own mobile device to work with them. Mobile devices are not permitted to be...
Idaho State University Hit with Breach Penalty

Idaho State University Hit with Breach Penalty

The accidental disclosure of electronic Protected Health Information stored on one of Idaho State University’s servers has led to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights has issuing a large fine. The University discovered that a...
HIPAA Omnibus Rule in Force From Today

HIPAA Omnibus Rule in Force From Today

The HIPAA Omnibus Rule comes into today, March 26, and amends existing HIPAA regulations to provide greater security for patient data; extending the reach of HIPAA and changing regulations to bring them in line with the Health Information Technology for Economic and...
50K Penalty After 441-Patient HIPAA Breach

50K Penalty After 441-Patient HIPAA Breach

According to Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations, healthcare organizations must report data violations involving more than 500 people to the Office of Civil Rights and financial sanctions apply for HIPAA breaches; however security...