Healthcare providers and their business associates are running out of time to implement security and privacy measures to protect sensitive patient data to avoid HIPAA fines associated with upcoming audits being conducted by the Office Of Civil Rights.
Electronic Records Must Be Protected
These audits are currently being conducted by KPMG LLP and examine numerous aspects of patient privacy and security policies being used by covered entities such as doctors, clinics, nursing homes, chiropractors, pharmacies, dentists, health insurance companies, HMO’s, psychologists and Government programs that pay for health care such as Medicaid, Medicare and Veteran’s health care.
Organizations that aren’t using security measures such as document encryption, Email encryption and laptop security can find themselves facing stiff fines and penalties as a result of non-compliance. In some cases, fines could total as much as $1.5 million dollars and criminal charges could be filed, depending on the nature of the breach.
Up until these recent audits, very little was done to enforce guidelines set forth in the Health Insurance And Portability Act of 1996, so many health care providers have been slow to make the adjustment to protect their critical data from loss, theft or unauthorized access that could result from laptop theft, snooping employees and unintended Email recipients being sent sensitive mail.
While you might think that putting these controls in place is time consuming or difficult to do, the truth is HIPAA security couldn’t be easier using an SaaS software solution that seamlessly plugs in to your existing infrastructure, without the need for hardware or a 5 day training session. To find out about how our solution can help you gain HIPAA compliance fast, click on the button below to request a quote for Email Encryption and Mobile Security services.
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