The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) was handed a $1.7 million fine by the Office of Civil Rights (OCR). The fine is one of the largest imposed on an organization. A closer look reveals why the fine was so large. Healthcare Info Security gives an in-depth look at the fine. The Alaska...
We are excited to announce our new Small Business Package. The Small Business Package is for organizations with 10 or fewer employees. We have reduced the price of the complete HIPAA Secure Now! service from $1,750.00 to $999.00. The Small Business Package is exactly the same as our regular service and includes custom policies and...
You’ve seen hundreds of companies selling HIPAA products. There are HIPAA training videos, policy templates, consultants, HIPAA books, HIPAA coffee mugs and the list goes on and on. And yet “become HIPAA compliant” is still on your long list of things to do. Have you asked yourself why you never seem to get to “become...
We have written about the HIPAA fine and reputation damage to Phoenix Cardiac Surgery. Phoenix Cardiac Surgery is a small 5 physician specialist in Phoenix, AZ. Let’s quickly review why the Office of Civil Rights fined Phoenix Cardiac Surgery $100,000. Lack of HIPAA Policies and Procedures Lack of HIPAA training for all workforce members Lack...
There is a lot to know about HIPAA but let’s take a look at 6 things that you must know. HIPAA is not optional A lot of practices feel they are exempt from the HIPAA regulations. This may stem from the fact that “small practices” were granted a 1 year extension to comply with the...
Over at Healthcareinfosecurity.com there is an insightful article on the first HIPAA audits. Some highlights of the article include: In the pilot phase, OCR is auditing eight health plans, two claims clearinghouses plus 10 provider organizations, including three hospitals, three physicians’ offices, and a laboratory, a dental office, a nursing/custodial facility and a pharmacy. ...
A recent incident shows just how important it is to train all workforce members on the HIPAA regulations. Notice how I used the words workforce members and not just employees. A temporary staff member of Providence Holy Cross Medical Center recently posted patient information on Facebook. The temporary staff member also made fun of...
There is a great post over at Infosec Island regarding a letter that was received from the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) after a data breach that occurred at a small medical practice. The breach was the result of a burglary. No details were given on what was stolen or what kind of patient information...
One of the questions that I get asked a lot is; What does it take to be compliant with the HIPAA Security Rule? And when I start to answer the question, inevitably the person’s eyes glaze over. So to prevent your eyes from glazing over I will give the simple answer: A lot. OK, that...
The Health and Human Services’ Office of Civil Rights (OCR) has handed out over $5 million in HIPAA fines in the past 2 weeks. OCR has also stated that more HIPAA enforcement is coming. So now is a very good time to think about how you can avoid regulatory penalties and even more importantly, how...
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