Author Archives: Frank Sivilli
5 Forms Every Healthcare Practice Should Digitize
If you run a small or mid-size medical practice, you can be forgiven for not staying ahead of medical technology trends. It takes more than enough resources just to manage a business while delivering exceptional patient care. But there’s one process improvement that will save you boatloads of time and money in the long run–and… Read More »
HIPAA Alliance Marketplace Connects CEs and BAs
For many health care providers, finding HIPAA compliant business associates poses a significant challenge–one with implications on the security of their sensitive health care data. The newly launched HIPAA Alliance Marketplace is a platform that simplifies the process for covered entities to find HIPAA compliant business associates. Health care providers can connect with health care… Read More »
Our Partners at Compliancy Group Help Client Pass HIPAA Audit
Compliancy Group announced today that it has helped a long-time client pass a HIPAA audit. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) investigation into a potential HIPAA violation resulted in no fine for a user of their web-based compliance solution, The Guard. HIPAA audits target hundreds of health care… Read More »
Recent Ransomware Attacks Could be HIPAA Violations
By now, you may have heard about the massive ransomware attack that has struck over 150 countries, including The United States, over the past week. If health care data taken hostage in a ransomware attack is unencrypted, it could constitute a HIPAA violation. Any electronic protected health information (ePHI) that is affected by a breach… Read More »
2017 HIPAA Enforcement to Target Ransomware, Interoperability, Medical Apps
“With big data, comes big responsibility,” says Office for Civil Rights (OCR) Director Roger Severino. This is just a fragment of the insight he gave into upcoming HIPAA enforcement trends in his plenary talks at Health Datapalooza 2017. Severino, the newly appointed Director of the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) OCR, spoke about… Read More »
HHS Secretary Tom Price Stresses Burdens of Health Care IT
Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Tom Price spoke about the future of innovation in health care IT during his opening remarks at Health Datapalooza 2017. “People, patients, and partnerships” are going to be the driving forces behind the Trump Administration’s work in health care IT. Secretary Price commented on reducing the burden of… Read More »
Fraudulent HIPAA Notifications Target Health Care Professionals
Recently, health care professionals have reported being solicited by organization fraudulently presenting themselves as federal entities. Instead of typical phishing emails involving a hack, one IT security firm based out of Miami, Florida is posing as HHS as a part of its marketing efforts. Emails sent from the account appear to steal legitimate HHS letterhead and conclude… Read More »
OCR Announces HIPAA Desk Audits for Business Associates
Starting in November, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is slated to begin HIPAA compliance desk audits for business associates. This is just the beginning of OCR’s ongoing push for a permanent HIPAA audit program, which will kick into higher gear come 2017. OCR first began its Phase… Read More »
HIPAA Roundup: Pharmacy Settlements and OCR Investigations
Over the past few years, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has considerably ramped-up its enforcement efforts for HIPAA violations. Pharmacies have continued to be hit with OCR investigations and massive fines for breaches of protected health information (PHI). These investigations are often initiated for minor privacy or… Read More »