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
As the healthcare sector continues to be a top target for cyber criminals, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued proposed updates to the HIPAA Security Rule (scheduled to be published in the Federal Register January 6). It...more
On October 18, 2023, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) through the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued an update1 containing two resource documents to help educate patients regarding privacy and security...more
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR) recently announced that it had entered into a Resolution Agreement, Corrective Action Plan, and settlement with Lifetime Healthcare, Inc., the...more
It is being reported that LifeLabs, a Canadian lab company that is the largest provider of laboratory diagnostics and lab testing services in Canada, recently paid an undisclosed ransom to hackers who compromised its computer...more
U.S. Estimates that Cyber Hacks Cost Up to $109 Billion in 20 - The Council for Economic Advisors (CEA) issued a report this month, entitled “The Cost of Malicious Cyber Activity to the U.S. Economy,” which concludes that...more
According to a recent U.S. Government Interagency report, ransomware is the fastest growing malware threat, targeting users of all types. An incredible 51 percent of respondents in a January 2017 study by the Ponemon...more
According to a recent US Government Interagency report, ransomware is the fastest growing malware threat, targeting users of all types, including health care facilities. This past spring, for example, the WannaCry ransomware...more
The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), has released a risk management reporting framework intended to "establish a common, underlying language for Cybersecurity risk management reporting — almost akin to US GAAP or IFRS...more
In the past several years, a huge increase has occurred in the number of electronic attacks in the United States using ransomware, a form of malware that targets and encrypts critical data and systems for the purpose of...more
We have repeatedly reiterated numerous warnings to the healthcare industry about malware and ransomware [see related posts here and here]. Our predictions have unfortunately become true, as November was the worst month ever...more
The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has announced that the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass) has agreed to settle an investigation against it as a result of a malware infection for $650,000, along with implementing a...more
On November 22, 2016, the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass) agreed to pay $650,000 and enter into a corrective action plan to settle allegations that it violated the HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules in connection...more
Last week, the Federal Trade Commission convened a ransomware workshop to discuss the rising epidemic of attacks against U.S. businesses and individuals. In a ransomware attack, a malicious actor tricks a user into...more
There is no doubt that companies face unprecedented volume and variation in both disruptive and intrusive cyberattacks on their networks. Among the different attack methodologies today, ransomware is quickly becoming a major...more
On July 11, 2016, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) issued guidance (the “Guidance”) for health care entities relating to ransomware and the Health Insurance Portability and...more
Forty bitcoins later (approximately $17,000), Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital can now access its electronic medical health records and return to treating its patients as scheduled. But as hackers develop new tools to access...more
The University of Washington Medicine (“UWM”) has agreed to settle the investigation conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) of potential HIPAA violations arising from a...more
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Civil Rights (OCR) announced on December 8, 2014 that a community behavioral health organization agreed to pay $150,000 and adopt a corrective action plan to...more
As cyberattacks targeting the healthcare industry continue to escalate, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has published its first-ever resolution agreement stemming from an...more