As a result of recent breaches – including breaches of health information and information held by health insurers – a great deal of attention has recently been focused on state data breach notification requirements. Most States have general data breach notification requirements that apply to all data breaches, including those involving health information. A few […]
Health Privacy
New Jersey Enacts Health Information Encryption Requirement
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has signed a new law requiring health insurance companies to protect client health information by encrypting the data. The law applies to any insurance company, health service corporation, hospital service corporation, medical service corporation, or health maintenance organization authorized to issue health benefits plans in New Jersey. These entities must take […]
HIPAA/HITECH Act Accounting of Disclosures NPRM: Redux?
In May 2011, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) issued a proposed rule to modify the HIPAA Privacy Rule’s standard for accounting of disclosures of protected health information (PHI). The proposed rule would have implemented the HITECH Act’s requirement for covered entities and business associates […]
Alston & Bird Health Care Advisory: HIPAA Audit Program Phase 2 Update
We have previously blogged about the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services HIPAA Audit Program, including the Audit Program pilot (November 30, 2011 and March 7, 2012), the release of the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) audit protocols (June 26, 2012), and the status of phase 2 of the Audit Program (February 26, 2014 […]
Laboratories Must Comply with New HIPAA Patient Access Rules by October 6, 2014
HIPAA covered laboratories and hospitals with laboratories subject to the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 (“CLIA”) must comply with changes to the HIPAA Privacy Rule that provide patients with direct access to laboratory test results by October 6, 2014. Earlier this year, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the HHS Office for Civil […]