Announcing its fourth ransomware cybersecurity investigation and settlement, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) also observed there has been a 264% increase in large ransomware breaches since 2018.
Here, the OCR reached an agreement with a medium-size private healthcare provider following a ransomware attack relating to potential violations of the HIPAA Security Rule.
If there is one thing artificial intelligence (AI) systems need is data and lots of it as training AI is essential for achieving success for a given use case. A recent investigation by Australia’s privacy regulator into the country’s largest medical imaging provider, I-MED Radiology Network, illustrates concerns about the use of medical data to
On April 22, 2024, the federal Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced a final rule enhancing privacy protections relating to reproductive health care. Specifically, the final rule amends the Privacy Rule under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) to, among other things, establish new limits on the
The explosion of generative AI has spawned a wide range of personal and professional tools and applications. One noteworthy (no pun intended) example of those tools and applications is notetakers that can capture, transcribe, and organize the content discussed at meetings (virtual or otherwise), enabling participants to more meaningfully participate in the meeting/discussion. They can
Recently, things may have sped up a little in your doctor’s office. The notes for your recent visit may have been organized and filed a little more quickly. You might have received assistance sooner than expected with a physician letter to your carrier concerning a claim. You also may have received copies of those medical
Since the privacy and security regulations were issued under the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), critics pointed to the limitations on the reach of those rules. A critical limitation advanced by privacy advocates is that the popular health data privacy rule extends only to certain covered entities and their business associates, not
We have been quite busy this October, which happens to be National Cybersecurity Awareness Month. But, we did not want to let the month go by without some recognition; and we are grateful to the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) for this always timely reminder for HIPAA covered entities and business associates – have
A $300,640 settlement announced yesterday by the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) provides important reminders about HIPAA Privacy Rule and data privacy practices generally: robust data disposal practices are critical and “protected health information” (PHI) is not limited to diagnosis or particularly sensitive information.
The OCR’s settlement involved a New England dermatology practice that reported
When use or disclosure of an individual’s health information or medical records is at issue, the assumption seems to be, much more often than not, that the HIPAA privacy and security rules apply. This has certainly been the case during the COVID-19 pandemic. Of course, it is true that in most healthcare settings, HIPAA is
Last week, in its Cybersecurity Summer Newsletter, the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) published best practices for creating an IT asset inventory list to assist healthcare providers and business associates in understanding where electronic protected health information (ePHI) is located within their organization, and improve HIPAA Security Rule compliance. OCR investigations often find that organizations