HHS Office for Civil Rights Director Melanie Fontes Rainer on Progress and News at OCR
ERISA Blog | Changes to the HIPAA Privacy Rules A Primer for Self-Insured Group Health Plans
Podcast - Data Privacy and Tracking Technology Compliance
Patient Data and Privacy
2022 DSIR Deeper Dive: OCR’s Right of Access Initiative
HIPAA Tips With Williams Mullen - Telehealth After the Pandemic
Relaxed HIPAA Restrictions For Providers Using Telehealth
Webinar: Investigating and Resolving Sexual Assaults on Campus
After months of uncertainty and multiple letters from industry associations advocating on behalf of the healthcare industry with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR), covered...more
The HIPAA Privacy, Security, and Breach Notification Rules apply to healthcare providers who engage in certain electronic transactions, healthcare clearinghouses, and health plans, including employee group health plans with...more
On February 12, 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) published a notice in the Federal Register regarding reinstatement of the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”)...more
Over the past decade, the number of health care data breaches reported to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) has increased dramatically. From 2009 to 2022, over 5,000 data...more
With 2023 underway, healthcare providers and other “covered entities,” as defined under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”), should be mindful of the upcoming annual reporting deadline for small...more
The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has been busy over the past month announcing new enforcement actions and settlement agreements related to violations of the Privacy...more
Issue a final rule revising the privacy regulation and write guidance on the information blocking rule. Formalize the fledgling audit program required by Congress more than 10 years ago. Engage with providers and other...more
On April 28, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) entered into a resolution agreement with Peachstate Health Management, LLC, doing business as AEON Clinical Laboratories...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (the “Court”) vacated a $4,348,000 civil monetary penalty (“CMP”) imposed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (“HHS-OCR”) in...more
Health care technology has seen an incredible amount of change over the past twelve months. As health care providers and entities continue to provide patient care in unprecedented times, it is becoming increasingly important...more
A recent Resolution Agreement between a solo practitioner physician practice and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR) reveals how complying with HIPAA by reporting a business...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Director of HIPAA enforcement agency cautions that many covered entities are not meeting the basic HIPAA requirements and sees “low-hanging fruit” for enforcement activity....more
Every year, we remind our readers that the HIPAA data breach notification regulations require covered entities to notify the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) of any reportable data breaches that involved fewer than 500...more
Report on Patient Privacy 20, no. 1 (January 2020) - In the waning days of 2019, the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) didn’t halt the HIPAA enforcement momentum it had built up during the last quarter of the year, dinging...more
The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services imposed a $2,154,000 civil money penalty (CMP) against Jackson Health System (JHS) for violations of the Health Insurance Portability and...more
Most health care providers are aware that the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”) and its accompanying negotiations provide for the privacy and security of patients’ health care...more
In the top three of the list of highly sensitive personal data to be concerned about is our medical information. It’s so sensitive because it is so personal. It used to be that our medical information was located in paper...more
On April 26, 2019, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued a Notification of Enforcement Discretion Regarding HIPAA Civil Money Penalties (the Notice) to inform the public...more
According to a February 12, 2019 Press Release from Protenus, a developer of analytics for patient privacy monitoring and compliance, 15,085,302 patient records were breached in 2018 – a startling number made even more...more
Covered entities, including employer sponsored health plans, should brace for audits and enforcement of the Privacy, Security, and Breach Notification rules by the Department of Health & Human Service Office of Civil Rights...more
In its November newsletter, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) made a great point that we are seeing in the industry—the risks associated with previous employees. According to its newsletter, entitled “Insider Threats and...more
The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Civil Rights (OCR) recently published a checklist to guide HIPAA-covered entities and business associates through an appropriate response to a ransomware or cybersecurity...more
To state the obvious, there has been some uncertainty regarding how the Trump Administration will affect federal agency enforcement efforts. However, at least, in regard to HIPAA Privacy and Security, the U.S. Department of...more
On April 24, 2017, the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”), announced its first settlement with a wireless health services provider, CardioNet, Inc., for alleged violations of the Health...more
In our last post, we highlighted the 2016 settlements between the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and various covered entities (and business associates), in one of OCR’s most active years. As of now, 2017 is proving to be on...more