As the healthcare industry moved from being paper based to technology dependent, it did so in various areas and created silos of information that was difficult to communicate across offices of other providers. While technological breakthroughs had taken other industries far ahead, the healthcare industry was yet to be completely techno savvy. The concept of…
As the federal tally of major breaches increased to a total of 1074 incidents affecting 33.7 million individuals since 2009, there are more such incidents added to the list every day. Health care organizations on a global scale, though being technologically sound with latest equipment, embedded software and networked environment, are increasingly becoming targets for…
Adhering to compliance policies such as HIPAA is essential for a new age medical company or healthcare provider. According to Tom Walsh, it is not wise for medical companies to procrastinate about thoroughly documenting their HIPAA compliance practices, as the restart of the federal audits is about to commence very soon. Following an established documentation…
With HIPAA Omnibus rule compliance deadline around the corner, it’s time to accelerate compliance measures and ensure that there is no scope for any breach. Reviewing contracts with business associates and subcontractors is an important and top priority task. While enforcement of the HIPAA Omnibus Rule began almost a year ago, there’s one more important…
The healthcare information breach tally continues to rises steadily despite security regulations and associated legal action. And the latest data breach to grab the headlines is the Montana Breach, where hackers gained access to a health department server, compromising the information of 1.3 million individuals on a DPHHS (Department of Public Health and Human Services)…
In spite of the continued emphasis on the need for protecting Patient Health Information (PHI), there are still few healthcare enterprises who take things for granted! The latest Parkview Health System Inc., HIPAA settlement for a corrective action at $800,000 demonstrates the need for PHI to be protected in all forms, even paper records. The…
No organization can afford to take the risk of inadequate data protection, particularly when it is business associates dealing with sensitive patient information. Under the HIPAA Omnibus Rule, business associates of covered entities are directly liable for HIPAA compliance. However in reality, although healthcare organizations enter into comprehensive business associate agreements, many fail to hold…
Did you always think compliance with HIPAA was cumbersome and expensive? Think again! Its non-compliance that can cause you twice the trouble! The Office for Civil Rights has been doling out fines to ensure that all healthcare entities take notice of HIPAA compliance – and consequently there have been nine settlements since June 1, 2013,…
With the OCR ramping up enforcement activities, and issuing a number of HIPAA compliance settlements, it has become imperative for healthcare entities to act swiftly, and meet all the requirements to successfully survive any OCR breach investigations and upcoming audits. The OCR is clearly sending a message that they are taking seriously their responsibility to…
Skagit County, Washington has agreed to a monetary settlement of $215,000 for potential violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Privacy, Security and Breach Notification Rules. In addition to this, Skagit County is also to work closely with the Department of Health and Human Services to correct deficiencies in its…
