Properly Encrypting ePHI

Heritage Valley Health System HIPAA Fine

A Nearly Million Dollar Mistake: Heritage Valley Health System

July 3, 2024 Gaurav Modi Comments Off

July 3, 2024 Did you know that ransomware attacks are becoming increasingly common in healthcare? Since 2018, there has been a whopping 264% increase in large ransomware breaches. The devastating impact of a ransomware breach on an organization is wide-reaching, regardless of its size, as seen with the Change Healthcare breach. It’s imperative to take the proper precautions to ensure that Protected Health Information (PHI) is secure against hacking attempts. At the center of the latest fine, Heritage Valley Health System (HVHS), which operates in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia, fell victim to ransomware attacks. These attacks infected HVHS systems, affecting sensitive patient information. As the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) reviewed the major data breach, several pieces of required documentation, such as a Security Risk Analysis (SRA) and an emergency plan, were absent. This missing documentation has led to a $950,000 fine and three years of corrective monitoring. Let’s explore what you can do to prevent this nearly million-dollar mistake. Importance of an SRA The purpose of the SRA is to review your risks and vulnerabilities regarding the management of ePHI (electronic Protected Health Information). This comprehensive analysis notes the physical, technical, and administrative controls to protect your patient’s PHI. Your SRA is documented proof that your organization understands its weaknesses and is making strides to address them and better protect patient data. While the SRA is a very important document, it is frequently missed. From the last round of random HIPAA audits, which have resumed recently, only 83% of practices and Business Associates could produce a sufficient SRA. SRAs are vital for practice compliance, showcasing growth, and best practices in safeguarding patient data. Check out our recent blog post here to learn more about the SRA. Why do I need plans in place? When running a medical practice, it’s important to be prepared for any situation that could arise. That’s why policies and procedures are so important. If your practice faces a scenario that may compromise PHI, your team needs easy access to a plan for handling the situation calmly. By addressing potential challenges well in advance, your team will feel empowered and confident in their ability to respond. Moreover, as part of your preventive measures, it’s beneficial to designate specific roles and responsibilities for your staff. This ensures that everyone is aware of their duties in any given situation. Cybersecurity Measures Unfortunately, healthcare practices have become very common victims of ransomware attacks. To prepare your organization for this, follow best cybersecurity practices, such as encryption, reviewing access controls, and creating unique sign-ons for all employees. Healthcare organizations should prioritize technical safeguards like encryption, access controls, and multi-factor authentication. However, security goes beyond technology. Implement security awareness training for staff, establish a data breach response plan, and maintain regular backups. Regularly conduct risk assessments and evaluate the security practices of third-party vendors. It’s important to consider partnering with an IT company offering valuable expertise. They can recommend the right tools, update you on evolving threats, and monitor your systems for suspicious activity. This layered approach will strengthen your systems and prepare you for potential attacks. How Smart Software Can Help Fines for HIPAA non-compliance can be staggering, but there are alternatives to the manual tracking and paper binders you may be used to. Intelligent software systems are designed to save you time and headaches and ultimately protect your practice to avoid audits and fines. Software empowers your team to manage your program easily and enables a culture of compliance in the office. It streamlines commonly overlooked requirements such as the SRA with dynamically created documentation and develops comprehensive plans, policies, and procedures so you stay current with the latest requirements. Better yet, when using cloud-based software solutions, you get 24/7 secure access and real-time updates when compliance regulations change. Schedule an educational consultation today to learn more about how software solutions can protect your practice.

Cybersecurity, HIPAA, Legislation

The HIPAA Security Rule: What You Need to Know

April 19, 2024 Gaurav Modi Comments Off

April 19, 2024 This week, we’ve gone through what makes HIPAA, well, HIPAA. HIPAA, or the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, comprises three rules. These rules include: Today, we’re talking about the Security Rule. Trust us, we know that compliance jargon can get complicated. That’s why we’re here to make it simple. What’s the Security Rule? Let’s kick it back to the totally rad 90s to give more insight. The year is 1996, and we’re entering the digital age. While we fought with dial-up and AOL was all the rage, more and more Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) was being created and transmitted digitally. HIPAA was signed into law because of this technological boom, needing federal guidance on the protection of health information with each new innovation. As a result, a part of HIPAA, the Security Rule was born. The Security Rule establishes the standards for how ePHI needs to be protected. This includes the administrative, physical, and technical safeguards to ensure ePHI is secure, remains private, and accurate. Building a Fortress Administrative safeguards are the first line of defense when it comes to protecting patient data. Administrative safeguards are policies and procedures that your practice or business does to ensure compliance and protection of ePHI. The Security Risk Analysis (SRA) is a classic example of an administrative safeguard. This proactive measure helps practices and business identify their risks and vulnerabilities when it comes to protecting PHI. The SRA is required under the Security Rule. Training also falls under administrative safeguards, ensuring all staff is knowledgeable and up-to-date with best practices to remain HIPAA-compliant. Keep it Secure You wouldn’t leave your keys lying around, would you? The same goes with PHI. Physical safeguards include a range of measures to secure ePHI. Common examples of the appropriate physical safeguards include:   Tech Talk Now, alongside physical safeguards, technical safeguards are key to keeping ePHI safe. We hate to break it to you, but a lock isn’t going to protect your ePHI when there’s a hacker across the globe trying to breach your ePHI! Common examples of technical safeguards include: Covered Entities and Business Associates can get on track with these proper safeguards by working with your IT department or an IT partner. How Abyde Can Help Phew! Who knew HIPAA could get so complicated? Well, Abyde is here to save the day, simplifying the compliance process for your organization. Abyde’s software is tailored to fulfill HIPAA regulations, including an intuitive SRA, entertaining training, custom policies and procedures, and more. The Abyde software is here to make sure you Never Stress Over Compliance Again! If you are looking for an IT partner to assist you in implementing technological safeguards, we can also help with that, too! We have numerous IT partners who specialize in healthcare, knowing what you need to be secure. Reach out to info@abyde.com and call 1.800.594.0883 to find your next IT partner. To learn more about HIPAA compliance, email info@abyde.com and schedule an educational consultation here for Covered Entities and here for Business Associates.

Cybersecurity, HIPAA

Abyde Feature Week: Scorecard

March 19, 2024 Gaurav Modi Comments Off

March 19, 2024 Welcome to Feature Week! Whether you stayed tuned from last week, or are a first-time reader, we are celebrating the features that Abyde offers to make it easy for your practice to stay compliant. Yesterday, we highlighted Abyde’s state-of-the-art Security Risk Analysis (SRA), turning a complicated evaluation of your business’s compliance practices into a simple questionnaire that can be completed in minutes. Once your SRA is done, the Scorecard comes into play. Get comfortable and stay tuned on how this feature can make HIPAA a breeze for your business. Keeping Score Whew!, That SRA wasn’t so bad, right? So, what’s next? This isn’t a scorecard like in golf but is a hole-in-one when it comes to monitoring your compliance practices. The Scorecard is a review of your answers to the SRA and gives your business a thorough explanation of how your current practices hold up against regulations, and what your organization can do to improve. The SRA is like a coach’s playbook, outlining the game plan for HIPAA compliance. The Scorecard is this plan in action, like reviewing your game tape, seeing what you need to improve and what vulnerabilities you have as a business. This scorecard is easy to review and gives your business the risk levels of your current practices. Each question is unique, and some practices are more critical than others. For instance, only changing your password every six months is not ideal, but not as risky as not encrypting your files. Unfortunately, some practices will never be ‘low risk’, even if they are not wrong just because there’s always the chance of human and technological errors. For instance, numerous employees working remotely while handling Protected Health Information (PHI) is always going to be riskier than all PHI staying in one location. Impacted by a breach? You can easily show proof of a Security Risk Analysis by downloading the Scorecard in the software, showing the government that you take HIPAA seriously. You can also see every version of your Scorecard in the software, seeing how your path to compliance has gotten easier with the help of Abyde. Ready to keep your HIPAA compliance score? Reach out to info@abyde.com and schedule a demo here for your business.