HiPAA/HITECH

Information technology is a component of your business operations. A breach of security could cause significant damage to your organization and your customers and patients.

Who Needs patient data protection

There are two primary components of HIPAA to understand in regard to your information security obligations. These components are commonly referred to as the Privacy Rule and the Security Rule.
These rules apply to “covered entities” (as defined by 45 C.F.R. § 160.103), which include:

Health plans (e.g., health insurance companies, HMOs, employer health plans, government programs)
Health care clearinghouses (i.e., those organizations that process health information they receive from another organization)
Health care providers who transmit any health information in electronic form in connection with certain financial and administrative transactions, such as electronic billing and fund transfers (e.g., doctors, clinics, psychologists, dentists, chiropractors, nursing homes, pharmacies)

These rules also extend to independent contractors, known as “business associates,” who have access to individually identifiable health information or perform certain functions and activities.

Protect Your Patients’ Data and your reputation

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Health Information Technology for Economical and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act require health care organizations to comply with federal standards when handling and transmitting patient data.
An effective information security program depends on both technology and operational practices. Technologies such as servers, networking components and applications require secure implementation to reduce vulnerabilities and protect sensitive information, as well as meet HIPAA and HITECH mandates for security.

The Privacy Rule

The Privacy Rule regulates the use and disclosure of Protected Health Information (PHI) in both paper and electronic formats. The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) states that the Privacy Rule requires:

Notification

Notifying patients about their privacy rights and how their information can be used.

Adoption

Adopting and implementing privacy procedures for its practice, hospital, or plan.

Training

Training employees so that they understand the privacy procedures.

Designation

Designating an individual to be responsible for seeing that the privacy procedures are adopted and followed.

Security

Securing patient records containing individually identifiable health information so that they are not readily available to those who do not need them.

The Security Rule

The Security Rule specifies what administrative, physical and technical safeguards must be in place to assure the confidentiality, integrity and availability of Electronic Protected Health Information (EPHI or e-PHI). Specifically, covered entities must (as defined in 45 C.F.R. § 164.306(a)):

Confidentiality

Ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of all e-PHI they create, receive, maintain or transmit

Identification

Identify and protect against reasonably anticipated threats to the security or integrity of the information

Protection

Protect against reasonably anticipated, impermissible uses or disclosures

Compliance

Ensure compliance by their workforce

HITECH

The HITECH Act extends HIPAA’s privacy and security requirements to business associates and augments notification requirements when PHI is breached or disclosed.

What we do for your company

To demonstrate compliance with HIPAA and HITECH, Sikich works with your team to:

Facilitate a risk assessment identifying the impact of potential risks and implemented countermeasures
Perform a specialized IT audit that benchmarks your organization against the HIPAA/HITECH requirements to identify any gaps with your current compliance
Provide remediation guidance to help you meet your privacy and security obligations
Create a breach notification plan to establish proper procedures and reporting requirements in the event of a data breach

Our Assessment covers the following areas

After we have assessed these four major areas, we will provide a final report that outlines the HIPAA/HITECH requirements and your compliance with the specific requirements applicable to your organization