Hogan Lovells hosted the second annual Health Privacy Law Forum for health privacy professionals yesterday. Participants spoke with Deven McGraw, Deputy Director of Health Information Privacy at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights , and former Federal Trade Commissioner Julie Brill, now a partner at Hogan Lovells and co-chair of its Privacy and Cybersecurity practice.
Tag Archives: Phase 2 Audits
OCR Releases Updated Audit Protocol
The revamped audit protocol for the upcoming HIPAA Phase 2 audits has been released by the US Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights. The audit protocol, which is posted on the HHS website, includes new requirements added by the 2013 Omnibus Final Rule for HIPAA covered entities and business associates. The Phase 2 audits will be more focused, and the stakes will be higher: the agency has indicated that audits may, in certain circumstances, lead to full compliance reviews—with the potential for fines or settlement agreements related to alleged HIPAA noncompliance. In addition, business associates will be subject to HIPAA audits for the first time.
OCR Highlights Priorities as it Steps Up HIPAA Enforcement
Last week, the Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights launched the long-awaited Phase 2 HIPAA Audit Program. Earlier this month, the agency posted two resolution agreements that continue the trend toward big dollar settlement amounts and a focus on security risk assessments and business associate agreements. With Phase 2 HIPAA Audits underway and more full-scale compliance reviews triggered by data breach reports, it is more important than ever to appropriately protect health information.