HHS

Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office for Civil Rights (OCR), announced a resolution with Phoenix Healthcare, a nursing care organization in Oklahoma with multiple facilities, regarding a potential violation under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Right of Access provision. This settlement marks the 47th enforcement action in the OCR Right of Access Initiative. It mandates that individuals or their personal representatives must have timely access to their health information. According to HIPAA regulations, covered entities must grant access to protected health information within 30 days of receiving a request from an individual. OCR's [...]

Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office for Civil Rights (OCR), disclosed a resolution with Lafourche Medical Group, a Louisiana-based medical entity specializing in emergency medicine, occupational medicine, and laboratory testing. The agreement concludes an inquiry prompted by a phishing attack that impacted the electronic protected health information of around 34,862 individuals. Phishing, a form of cybersecurity attack, involves deceiving individuals into revealing sensitive information through electronic means, like email, by posing as a trustworthy entity. This settlement represents the first instance in which OCR has addressed a phishing attack under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act [...]