Articles and Blogs

On March 18, 2024, the Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) issued an update to its December 2022 Bulletin regarding the usage of online tracking technologies by HIPAA-regulated entities. When originally published, the Bulletin aimed to clarify when identifiable information collected by tracking technologies on a regulated entity’s website may constitute protected health information (“PHI”)... READ MORE

On January 11, 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) issued a Final Rule entitled “Safeguarding the Rights of Conscience as Protected by Federal Statutes” (the “2024 Final Rule”). The 2024 Final Rule, which will take effect on March 11, 2024, seeks to clarify the mechanisms... READ MORE

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”) recently released updated guidance in its October 2023 Cybersecurity Newsletter emphasizing the importance of sanction policies in maintaining HIPAA compliance. This guidance builds upon a threat brief previously issued in August 2022 by HHS’ Health Sector Cybersecurity Coordination Center (“HC3”).... READ MORE

On April 12, 2023, the Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) in the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (“HHS”) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) to strengthen privacy protections under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”) for reproductive health care. The proposed rule builds on the previous guidance... READ MORE

On January 5, 2023, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (“NPRM”) setting forth a proposed rule implementing various statutes that provide protections for health care providers and facilities who may have conscientious objections to certain forms of health care, such as... READ MORE

On December 7, 2022, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (“HHS”) updated the Mobile Health App Interactive Tool (the “Tool”) to include new questions and new use cases. The Tool is a result of collaborative efforts between the FTC, HHS Office for Civil Rights... READ MORE

On January 3, 2023, the Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced its resolution of an investigation into a full-service diagnostic laboratory’s potential violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”) Privacy Rule’s right of access provisions. Although this resolution is the first of... READ MORE

The United States Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) announced a $300,640 settlement and corrective action plan with a dermatology provider over the improper disposal of protected health information (“PHI”). Background In May of 2021, the dermatology provider reported a breach to OCR when empty specimen containers with PHI on... READ MORE

A North Carolina dental practice (“Practice”) has been fined $50,000 following a Notice of Final Determination regarding a violation of the HIPAA Privacy Rule. In the Notice of Proposed Determination, the United States Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) stated that a patient visited the Practice in 2013 and... READ MORE

Tuesday, May 5 Recap Note – ​We believe this is the most up-to-date information available at this time, but it is subject to change ​as circumstances warrant. Also, all finalized resources can be found ​on the COVID-19 ​Resource ​Center page ​of Hall Render’s website.​ CMS Uploads New Medicare 1135 Waiver Document CMS issued a new document... READ MORE