HIPAA Compliance Insights

HIPAA Exempt

HIPAA Exempt: Who Actually Qualifies and Who Doesn't

A gym owner in Texas once told me, straight-faced, that his business was HIPAA exempt because he wasn't a doctor. He collected health

Carl B. Johnson · May 4, 2026

HIPAA Basics

What Is Meant by HIPAA? A Practical Guide for 2026

Last year, a solo-practice dermatologist in Connecticut called me in a panic. She'd just received a letter from the Office for Civil Rights

Carl B. Johnson · May 4, 2026

HIPAA Protected Health Information

What Information Is Protected Under HIPAA Law

A hospital in Texas once faxed a patient's psychiatric records to the wrong physician's office — a solo practitioner across town who

Carl B. Johnson · May 4, 2026

HIPAA and Compliance Training

HIPAA and Compliance Training: What Actually Works

A receptionist at a dermatology clinic in New England forwarded a spreadsheet of 1,800 patient names and insurance IDs to her personal Gmail account.

Carl B. Johnson · May 3, 2026

California Confidentiality of Medical Information Act

California Confidentiality of Medical Information Act Guide

A $4,350 Fine Per Patient Record — And That's Just the State Penalty A few years ago, I worked with a behavioral health

Carl B. Johnson · May 3, 2026

HIPAA Privacy Violation

HIPAA Privacy Violation: What It Costs and How It Happens

A nurse in Tennessee pulls up her ex-husband's medical records after a custody dispute. A front desk worker in Colorado texts a photo

Carl B. Johnson · May 2, 2026

Privacy Rule

Privacy Rule HIPAA Summary: What You Actually Need to Know

A $4.75 Million Mistake That Started With One Misunderstood Rule In 2022, Memorial Hermann Health System paid a $2.4 million settlement to HHS

Carl B. Johnson · May 2, 2026

ePHI Breach Examples

Which Example Is a Breach of ePHI? Real Cases Explained

A Stolen Laptop. A $1.5 Million Fine. One Unlocked Screen. In 2018, the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center lost a $4.3

Carl B. Johnson · May 2, 2026

Who Created HIPAA

Who Created HIPAA? The Real Story Behind the Law

A Law Born From Insurance Horror Stories In 1995, a single mother in Texas lost her health insurance after switching jobs — not because she couldn&

Carl B. Johnson · May 1, 2026

HIPAA Sample Policies

HIPAA Sample Policies: What Actually Works in 2026

A 340-bed hospital in Idaho downloaded a set of HIPAA sample policies from the internet in 2019, dropped their logo on each page, and filed

Carl B. Johnson · May 1, 2026

HIPAA IT Risk Assessment

HIPAA IT Risk Assessment: What Most Orgs Get Wrong

The One Document OCR Asks For First — Every Single Time I've been involved in over a hundred HIPAA readiness reviews. And I can

Carl B. Johnson · Apr 30, 2026

HIPAA Covered Entity

Which Segments of Your Organization Are Covered Under HIPAA

The Question That Catches Most Compliance Officers Off Guard A hospital system I worked with had 14,000 employees. Their HIPAA training program covered about

Carl B. Johnson · Apr 30, 2026