In today's digital age, the health care industry faces a growing threat from scammers who don't have to use sophisticated cyberattacks; they can use the most routine task to steal information from unwitting and...more
Are you a health care provider, business associate, or other entity subject to the requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regarding the use and disclosure of protected health...more
On April 17, 2023, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a Proposed Rule to support reproductive health care privacy in the Federal Register. Through the...more
On March 22, 2023, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, launched the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network Modernization Initiative...more
Earlier this week, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) published another notification alerting health care providers of increasing cyber threats to medical devices operating on unpatched or outdated devices. In its...more
On April 21, 2020, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released a series of announcements signaling its intention to finalize and enforce certain aspects of the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) Cures Act...more
4/30/2020
/ Blocking Statutes ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Compliance ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health IT ,
OIG ,
ONC ,
Patient Access ,
Popular ,
Proposed Rules
There is no question that COVID-19 has brought unprecedented change to our world. The temporary relaxation of HIPAA's requirements is one of many examples of the government's efforts to address the public's health care needs...more
3/24/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HIPAA Breach Notification Rule ,
HIPAA Privacy Rule ,
HIPAA Security Rule ,
OCR ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Relief Measures ,
Telehealth ,
Telemedicine ,
Waivers
On March 16 and 17, the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced limited waivers of penalties and sanctions with respect to certain HIPAA requirements due to the...more
On March 9, 2020, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) finalized two sets of regulations that are intended to increase patients' access to health data. As explained by HHS Secretary Alex M. Azar, "These...more
Health care providers should take heed of the $10,000 settlement announced on October 2, 2019 between the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and a small dental practice based on...more
11/20/2019
/ Covered Entities ,
Dentists ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
OCR ,
Online Reviews ,
Penalties ,
PHI ,
Physicians ,
Prior Authorization ,
Settlement ,
Unauthorized Disclosure ,
Yelp
October was National Cyber Security Awareness Month and, as its parting gift, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health...more
On Friday, December 28, 2018, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released several documents, including the "Health Industry Cybersecurity Practices (HICP): Managing Threats and Protecting Patients," an...more
The HHS Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) and the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released an updated Security Risk Assessment (SRA) Tool this week. All covered entities and business...more
10/19/2018
/ Business Associates ,
Covered Entities ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Duty to Update ,
Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
OCR ,
ONC ,
Popular ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Security Risk Assessments
After a confusing month of contradicting guidance, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a memorandum clarifying its position regarding the use of text messaging with patient information between providers....more
A recently unsealed qui tam action further demonstrates the growing focus on the propriety of incentive payments made under Medicare and Medicaid's Electronic Health Records (EHR) Incentive Programs. Health care providers...more
A multi-year discovery dispute regarding the adverse medical incident reports of a Jacksonville, Florida hospital concluded on October 2, 2017 when the United States Supreme Court denied a petition for a writ of certiorari in...more
11/13/2017
/ Appeals ,
Data Collection ,
Data Reporting ,
Discovery Disputes ,
FL Supreme Court ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Hospitals ,
Medical Errors ,
Medical Malpractice ,
Medical Records ,
Motion to Compel ,
Patient Safety ,
Peer Review ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS ,
State and Local Government ,
Work-Product Doctrine
The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) released an updated version of the 2011 Guide to Privacy and Security of Electronic Health Information (Guide). The 62-page Guide provides significant guidance to...more
It has long been established that there was no private right of action with regard to HIPAA. All providers must be aware that state courts are beginning to turn the tide regarding such liability. On November 11, 2014, the...more
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Innovation Center intends to award $840 million in grants to test methodologies to improve clinical practices and care. CMS's Transforming Clinical Practice Initiative (TCPI)...more