Aris Medical Solutions Blogs
Keeping you informed and prepared
Introducing Our New HIPAA Compliance Platform
Is your medical practice HIPAA compliant? Do you have a Risk Management Plan? Do you have all your HIPAA policies and procedures? Have your employees completed HIPAA training? Do you have all your Business Associate agreements...
Read More
ICD-10 updates, Fraud, Waste, and Abuse Training, Booklets and Prevention
We try to share useful information as we come across it. Below are some links that we think may be of interest to our audience such as: ICD-10 updates, Fraud, Waste, and Abuse Training, Booklets, and Prevention. We have also...
Read More
Controlling Access to ePHI
The OCR released their Summer 2021 Cybersecurity Newsletter and it stated that a recent report of security incidents and data breaches were committed 61% by external actors and 39% by insiders. During COVID last year, systems that monitor audit logs...
Read More
Changes to the HIPAA Privacy Rule
As all of you know, HIPAA is a moving target. Just when you think you understand what is going on, it changes. By now, most of you have heard about the 21st Century Cures Act / Information Blocking Rule. This...
Read More
Security Rule Requirements Part 5, Business Associates § 164.308(b)(1)
Most practices seek assistance from one or more businesses to help them with certain functions within their organization. Depending on the type of service they provide, they may be considered a “Business Associate” under the HIPAA guidelines. So, what defines...
Read More
Security Rule requirements, Part 4, Evaluations 45 CFR § 164.308(a)(8)
Many practices think once they have conducted a risk analysis, they are done with their HIPAA compliance efforts. Unfortunately, a risk analysis is just the beginning! You must document your ongoing HIPAA efforts through evaluations. 45 CFR § 164.308(a)(8) Evaluation – HIPAA...
Read More
Cosmetic Practice Fined – No one is immune from HIPAA
April 15, 2021 By Suze Shaffer | Aris Medical Solutions Recently a cosmetic practice was fined $30,000 to settle potential HIPAA Privacy Rule violations. In the past many practices believed if they did not accept insurance payments (considered as a...
Read More
Security Rule requirements, Part 3 – Contingency Planning
When it comes to planning for a disaster, most people think “that won’t happen to me”. Under HIPAA, you are required to ensure the integrity, confidentiality, and available of ePHI. When creating your contingency plan, it is necessary to review...
Read More
HIPAA Security Rule requirements, Part 2 – Security Awareness and Security Incident Procedures
What the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) considers as reasonable and appropriate safeguards are always open for discretion. Every organization is different, and what may work for one, may not for...
Read More
HIPAA Security Rule requirements, Part I
It is hard to believe we are in 2021, but I am sure you are like the rest of us and glad to see 2020 in the rear-view mirror. As we move into this new year, we need to look...
Read More
OCR Issues Audit Report on Health Care Compliance
Yesterday, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) released its 2016-2017 HIPAA Audits Report. Although this seems outdated, it typically takes this long to compile the data. They reviewed selected covered entities...
Read More
Looking back at 2020 and HIPAA Compliance Violations
During this pandemic, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) relaxed some of the requirements for Telehealth. This has since been retracted. Make sure the service you are using is in fact HIPAA compliant and you have a business associate agreement...
Read More
OCR enforces potential HIPAA violations for failure to remove a terminated employee’s access to Protected Health Information (PHI)
When an employee is terminated, it is necessary to remove access to protected health information (PHI) immediately. It is just as important for employees not to share their log-in credentials with anyone. The City of New Haven, Connecticut found out...
Read More
Cyber Alert: Ransomware Activity Targeting the Healthcare and Public Health Sector
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have credible information of an increased and imminent cybercrime threat to U.S. hospitals and healthcare providers. CISA,...
Read More
Responsibilities of a HIPAA Compliance Officer
While the nation was shut down and people were suffering, hackers were busy at work. It is coming to light how many organizations have had a data breach and have been hit with ransomware. Now more than ever all organizations...
Read More
Inventory lists and network mapping, why they are so important!
First, it is required under HIPAA that medical organizations and business associates ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of ePHI. Part of a HIPAA compliance program requires an entity to conduct a HIPAA risk analysis to determine where ePHI is...
Read More
HIPAA Fines assessed to small practices
We find this difficult to talk about especially during these trying times. However, we feel it is important for all practices to know that HIPAA violations and fines have not disappeared during this pandemic. Investigations take a long time and...
Read More
Telemedicine on the other side of the Pandemic
By Suze Shaffer July 15, 2020 The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) back in March relaxed it’s enforcement for non-compliance with regards to telemedicine. They permitted the use of audio/video communication applications such as Facetime, Google hangouts, Zoom, and Skype...
Read More
Cell phone use in the workplace causing distrust
By Suze Shaffer March 15, 2020 We all have been annoyed at one time or another when we arrive at a counter or a place of business and the person is on their cell phone and we are ignored. Of...
Read More
A Patient’s Right of Access is still an issue for many Covered Entities
By Suze Shaffer February 15, 2020 Many covered entities struggle to understand what is “right of access” for individuals. Under HIPAA and the Omnibus Rule, a patient has the “right” to request a copy of their medical record in the...
Read More