HHS Office for Civil Rights Settles HIPAA Security Rule Violations for $950,000
NuLLFiXThe settlement with Heritage Valley Health System is OCR's third resolution involving ransomware. The agency has observed a 264% increase in major ransomware breaches since 2018. Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced a settlement with Heritage Valley Health System (Heritage Valley), which operates in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia. This settlement addresses potential violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Security Rule following a ransomware attack. Ransomware and hacking are major cyber threats in the healthcare sector. Since 2018, large ransomware breaches reported to OCR have increased by [...]