Summing up the results of the previous year, regulatory experts have noted that more than half of the businesses punished for HIPAA lapses in 2018 involved well-known big business entities making it a notable theme of the...more
1/18/2019
/ Data-Sharing ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Enforcement ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
NIST ,
OCR ,
Patient Privacy Rights ,
PHI ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Public Comment ,
Request For Information
Last spring the WannaCry ransomware cyber-attack crippled the global economy, impacting over 100,000 organizations throughout 150 countries and generating an estimated $4 billion in losses. The National Health Information...more
Hurricane Harvey has been pummeling the Gulf Coast since Monday, with nearly 52 inches of rainfall in parts of Texas. The storm has displaced thousands of people from their homes and has resulted in over 30 reported deaths....more
Earlier this month a massive ransomware attack spread throughout 150 countries, infecting 300,000 computers and crippling businesses across the globe. The ransomware, called “Wannacry,” infiltrated a variety of institutions,...more
Could a lost cell phone or laptop cost your organization millions of dollars?
Mobile devices have enabled vast improvements in the efficiency and quality of healthcare delivery. ...more
The failure to timely report a breach of unsecured protected health information (PHI) has cost Presence Health (one of the largest health systems in Illinois) almost half of a million dollars.
Earlier this month,...more
This month marked the largest HIPAA settlement to-date for a single entity. Advocate Health Care Network (“Advocate”) agreed to pay $5.5 million and adopt a corrective action plan after an investigation by the Department of...more
One of the fastest growing areas of cybercrime is ransomware. Ransomware is a type of malicious software that encrypts data and makes it inaccessible to authorized users. The hackers who orchestrate ransomware attacks demand...more
Oregon Health & Science University (“OHSU”) has paid $2.7 million to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) to settle allegations that it violated the Health Insurance Portability...more
7/20/2016
/ Business Associates ,
Corrective Actions ,
Data Security ,
Electronically Stored Information ,
Encryption ,
Fines ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HIPAA Breach ,
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) ,
OCR ,
PHI ,
Settlement Agreements
Amidst criticism that the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”) lags behind technological innovation, the Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) released new guidance to aid app developers in determining how...more
The Health Law Gurus™ are here to help you stay current on issues and breaking news in health law. To help you stay up-to-date, we are excited to announce our new segment, “Ask the Health Law Gurus™.” Each month, we will...more
For the second time in history, the Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) has imposed a civil monetary penalty (“CMP”) against a covered entity for violations of the Health Insurance and Portability Act (“HIPAA”). Lincare, Inc., a...more
Earlier this month, Henry Schein Practice Solutions, Inc. (“Schein”), a provider of office management software to dental practices, learned the hard way that exaggerating the capabilities of its products can be very costly....more
The Precision Medicine Initiative (“PMI”) was officially unveiled in President Obama’s January 2015 State of the Union address. Precision medicine is an emerging approach for disease prevention and treatment that considers an...more
Wearable devices, such as fitness trackers and smart watches, have taken the United States technology industry by storm. In the past three years, there has been a 500% increase in the number of fitness bands and activity...more
Triple-S Management Corporation (“Triple-S”), on behalf of its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Triple-S Salud, Inc., Triple-C, Inc., and Triple-S Advantage, Inc., has agreed to pay $3.5 million as part of a Resolution Agreement...more
Beginning in 2016, the United States Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) will conduct another round of audits to gauge compliance with privacy provisions in the Health Insurance Portability...more
St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center (“SEMC”), a tertiary care hospital in Brighton, Massachusetts, has agreed to pay $218,400 to the Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) to settle alleged violations of the Health Insurance Portability...more
Cornell Prescription Pharmacy (“CPP”), a Colorado single-location pharmacy, has agreed to pay $125,000 to the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights to settle alleged violations of the...more
Reporting Deadline for HIPAA Breaches – March 1, 2015 – Did you have a HIPAA breach this year involving less than 500 individuals? If so, the deadline to report such a breach to the U.S. Department of Health and Human...more
Millions Affected by Hackers’ Attack on Health Insurer Anthem, Inc. –
“Anthem was the target of a very sophisticated external cyber attack,” announced Joseph Swedish, Anthem’s President and CEO. Anthem, Inc., formerly...more
Mobile health apps (also known as mHealth apps) are increasingly popular with consumers. As of 2014, there were more than 100,000 mobile health apps available on iOS and Android platforms, and total revenue from mobile health...more
News from the Health Law Gurus™ is a weekly summary of notable health law news from around the country with helpful links to related content. Check back every week for the latest health law news stories....more
1/16/2015
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Business Associates ,
Covered Entities ,
Data Breach ,
Employer Mandates ,
Encryption ,
Full-Time Employees ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare ,
USPS
The New Year is here. It is time to make those 2015 resolutions, and not just those for getting fit and healthy. Resolve now to improve your organization’s compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability...more
1/6/2015
/ Best Management Practices ,
Business Associates ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Covered Entities ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Protection ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare ,
PHI ,
Risk Assessment ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Year-End Planning
Anchorage Community Mental Health Services, Inc. (“ACMHS”) will pay $125,000 to the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) to settle alleged violations of the Health Insurance...more