HIPAA Compliance Insights

HIPAA Email

Is Email PHI? What HIPAA Actually Requires for Email

In December 2023, OCR settled with a healthcare system for $480,000 after an investigation revealed workforce members had been emailing unencrypted patient information to

Carl B. Johnson · Jun 18, 2024

HIPAA Compliance

Is Google Hangouts HIPAA Compliant? What You Must Know

In early 2023, a small behavioral health practice in the Midwest contacted me after receiving a patient complaint. A clinician had been conducting therapy sessions

Carl B. Johnson · Jun 18, 2024

HIPAA Compliance

Is HIPAA Only for Medical Professionals? Not Even Close

In 2023, OCR settled a case with a dental management company — not a dentist, not a hospital, but an administrative services firm — for $350,000

Carl B. Johnson · Jun 18, 2024

HIPAA Basics

Is HIPPA the Right Spelling? Understanding HIPAA

OCR investigators don't grade your spelling — but if your compliance policies, workforce training materials, or Notice of Privacy Practices consistently reference "HIPPA&

Carl B. Johnson · Jun 18, 2024

HIPAA Violation

Is Telling a Story About a Patient a HIPAA Violation?

A nurse finishes a difficult shift and, over dinner with friends, recounts a dramatic case from the ER — the injuries, the treatment, the patient'

Carl B. Johnson · May 20, 2024

HIPAA Texting

Is Texting a Patient a HIPAA Violation? What to Know

In 2023, a dental practice in Texas received a $50,000 OCR settlement after a staff member texted appointment details — including treatment information — to the

Carl B. Johnson · May 20, 2024

HIPAA Disclosures

When It Would Be Appropriate to Release Patient Information To

In 2023, OCR settled with a covered entity for $1.3 million after workforce members disclosed protected health information to unauthorized individuals — people who seemed

Carl B. Johnson · May 6, 2024

HIPAA Updates

Latest HIPAA Updates: What Changed in 2024 and 2025

In December 2023, OCR issued its largest-ever HIPAA settlement — a $4.75 million penalty against Montefiore Medical Center after a workforce member stole protected health

Carl B. Johnson · May 6, 2024

HIPAA Violation

Lawsuit for HIPAA Violation: What You Need to Know

In 2023, a Florida hospital system paid $1.3 million after a former employee accessed the protected health information of over 1,500 patients without

Carl B. Johnson · May 6, 2024

Fraud Waste and Abuse

List of Fraud Waste and Abuse in Healthcare HIPAA

In 2023, the Department of Justice recovered over $2.68 billion in settlements and judgments related to healthcare fraud. Behind that staggering number is a

Carl B. Johnson · May 6, 2024

Meaningful Use

Meaningful Use Electronic Health Records and HIPAA

When OCR settled with a major health system in 2017 for $2.5 million after a breach involving an unencrypted laptop containing protected health information

Carl B. Johnson · May 6, 2024

Medical Office Compliance Training

Medical Office Compliance Training: What OCR Expects

In 2023, OCR settled with a dental practice in New England for $50,000 after an investigation revealed that no member of the workforce — including

Carl B. Johnson · May 6, 2024