Recent federal enforcement actions have brought home the lesson that there’s really no acceptable reason for denying a patient timely access to medical records. Last year, for example, the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR)...more
Many HIPAA covered entities and business associates struggle with developing and implementing a sanctions policy. What should it say, is zero-tolerance required, do we have to impose discipline in every case, etc. These are...more
Elite Dental Associates (Elite), located in Dallas, Texas has agreed to settle alleged HIPAA violations with the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) for $10,000....more
On February 16, 2016, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced that it had entered into an agreement with Complete P.T., Pool & Land Physical Therapy, Inc. (CPT), a physical...more
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, Public Law 104-191 and the regulations promulgated thereunder (“HIPAA”) should be now well-known to health care providers and health plans. Under HIPAA’s...more
On September 29, it was revealed that the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) will commence Phase 2 of its HIPAA audit program in “early 2016.” OCR’s revelation regarding the Phase 2 audits, which had been the subject of...more
On September 29, 2015, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) released two reports that reviewed the Office of Civil Rights’ (OCR) enforcement of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). The...more
Officials at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights (HHS OCR) have recently selected a vendor to conduct the second wave of HIPAA audits. These so-called "Phase 2 Audits" are set to commence...more
On September 2, 2015, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) announced that Cancer Care Group, P.C. (CCG), a physician practice located in Indiana, agreed to pay $750,000 as part of a settlement to resolve...more
On January 25, 2013, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a final rule (Final Rule) containing modifications to the privacy standards (Privacy Rule), security...more
As we have reported in this blog, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) recently released final regulations containing modifications to the HIPAA Privacy, Security, Enforcement, and...more
In this information technology era, it is little wonder that the Obama Administration has made enforcement of data security and privacy protections a top priority. The enforcement emphasis reflects public opinion favoring...more
On January 25, 2013, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published final regulations that modify the Privacy, Security, Enforcement and Breach Notification Rules issued pursuant to the Health Insurance...more
Changes to the HIPAA Enforcement Rule - Background: On October 30, 2009, HHS issued an interim final rule revising the Enforcement Rule to incorporate provisions of the HITECH Act. The NPRM then proposed a number of...more
The Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”) of the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) published today the much anticipated final omnibus rule implementing the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health...more