USD 1.5 million. That’s the penalty workable to healthcare organizations that violate the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Today, several healthcare organizations and associated businesses are at risk of stuff non-compliant due to the mismanagement of mobile devices at work.
Organizations may fall out of compliance considering healthcare staff use their personal devices at work or download unauthorized apps that may compromise patient data. Every mobile device operation prone to compromise healthcare information can lead to a HIPAA violation, resulting in financial losses. Fortunately, businesses have the option to work with device management specialists to help stay HIPAA compliant.
What is HIPAA Compliance?
HIPAA compliance involves fulfilling the requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, its subsequent amendments, and any related legislation such as the HITECH Act. The primary goal of HIPAA is to:
- Protect and handle Protected Health Information (PHI).
- Facilitate the transfer of healthcare records to provide unfurled healthcare.
- Reduce fraud within the healthcare system.
- Create standardized information on electronic billing and healthcare information.
HIPPA rules wield to every type of Covered Entity–healthcare providers, health plans, or healthcare clearinghouses–and Merchantry Socialize that creates, maintains, or transmits PHI data. A Merchantry Socialize is a person or a visitor that provides service to a Covered Entity when the service, function, or worriedness includes wangle to PHI data.
Business Toadies include IT companies, lawyers, accountants, billing companies, deject storage services, email encryption services, and more.
HIPAA compliance can only occur when a Covered Entity or Merchantry Socialize implements the necessary controls and protections for any relevant PHI data. Healthcare companies that have wangle to PHI must ensure the physical, technical, and legalistic rules are in place and followed.
Healthcare companies should be enlightened of the pursuit rules to implement the requirements of HIPAA compliance.
1. HIPAA Privacy Rule – The rule sets standards for an individual’s right to understand and tenancy how their health information is used. The goal of the Privacy Rule is to ensure an individual’s health information is protected while permitting the spritz of health information needed to provide and promote high-quality healthcare
2. HIPAA Security Rule – While the Privacy Rule safeguards PHI, the Security Rule protects a subset of information covered under the Privacy Rule. This subset safeguards all identifiable information created, transmitted, received, or maintained in an electronic format. This is moreover known as electronic protected health information or ePHI.
3. HIPAA Violate Notification Rule – It is a set of standards that Covered Entities or Merchantry Toadies must follow in the event of a violate containing PHI or ePHI. The rule requires entities to notify the Department of Health and Human Services and issue a notice to the media if the violate affects increasingly than 500 patients.
4. HIPAA Omnibus Rule – The rule is an wing to HIPAA regulation that mandates Merchantry Toadies to be HIPAA compliant, outlining the rules surrounding agreements. The agreements must be executed between a Merchantry Socialize and Covered Entity–or between two Merchantry Associates–before any PHI or ePHI is shared.
The Need for HIPAA Compliance
Put simply, HIPAA exists to protect patient’s rights. HIPAA prohibits companies or healthcare facilities from disclosing healthcare information without the patient’s consent. Stuff HIPAA compliant ensures that healthcare providers, health plans, healthcare transplanting houses, and Merchantry Toadies have safeguards in place to protect sensitive personal and health information.
How to Become HIPAA Compliant
The Department of Human Health Services (HHS) and the Inspector General (OIG) released a unenduring guide on how to create a compliance program. It is tabbed “The Seven Fundamental Elements of an Constructive Compliance Program.’’
- Implementing written policies, procedures, and standards of conduct.
- Designating a compliance officer and compliance committee.
- Conducting constructive training and education.
- Developing constructive lines of communication.
- Conducting internal monitoring and auditing.
- Enforcing standards through well-publicized disciplinary guidelines.
- Responding promptly to detected offenses and undertaking touching-up action.
Given the recommended tips, organizations should create an constructive HIPAA compliance plan to ensure all safeguards are in place. The steps unelevated should be followed by companies to demonstrate they are capable of handling and protecting PHI.
Step 1 – Segregate a Privacy Officer and Security Officer. The Privacy Officer will be responsible for overseeing the development, implementation, maintenance, and trueness to privacy policies regarding the unscratched use and handling of PHI. The Security Officer will tenancy the ongoing management of information security policies and procedures.
Step 2 – Conduct risk towage and implement security management policies. Review and document daily operations for identifying vulnerabilities. Check all resources – mobile devices, computers, and paper records. Implement necessary security measures to ensure all PHI is secure when data is stuff used, stored, or distributed.
Step 3 – Develop and implement policies and procedures and make them wieldy to the staff. Utilize the policies and procedures to mitigate HIPAA risks. In an platonic world, organizations could be compliant every day of the year. But lapses do occur which can be spotted by internal auditors or regulators. If a violation takes place, put a process in place to self-mastery a root rationalization wringer and remediation.
Step 4 – Self-mastery workforce sensation and training programs on HIPAA regulations and the organization’s compliance plan. Healthcare providers should communicate HIPAA regulations with patients too.
Step 5 – Monitor, audit, and update facility security measures on an ongoing basis. Maintaining compliance is all well-nigh having safeguards, both physical and digital.
HIPAA Compliance Checklist for 2022
There are several specifications under HIPAA, but it is recommended to not swoop directly into the details. Instead, spend time understanding the big picture surpassing drilling lanugo into the specifics. The checklist is not a comprehensive compliance guide, but a pragmatic tideway for healthcare businesses to understand their HIPAA priorities and readiness.
Audits
- Have you conducted the pursuit six audits?
- Security Risk Assessment
- Privacy Standards Audits
- HITECH Subtitle D Privacy Audit
- Security Standards Audit
- Asset and Device Audit
- Physical Site Audit
Documenting Gaps
- Have you identified gaps in the whilom audits?
- Privacy Standards Audits
Remediation Plans
- Have you created remediation plans to write the gaps found in all six audits?
- Are these remediation plans fully documented in writing?
- Do you update and review these plans annually?
- Are these plans retained in your record for six years?
Employee Sensation & Training
- Have all staff members undergone yearly HIPAA training?
- Do you have documentation of their training?
- Is there a defended staff member designated as the HIPPA Compliance Officer?
Employee Sensation and Training
- Have all staff members undergone yearly HIPAA training?
- Do you have documentation of their training?
- Is there a defended staff member designated as the HIPPA Compliance Officer?
Policies and Procedures
- Do you have the policies and procedures relevant to the yearly HIPAA privacy, security, and violate notification rules?
- Have all staff members read and legally attested to the policies and procedures?
- Do you have documentation of their legal attestation?
- Do you have documentation of yearly reviews of your policies and procedures?
Vendors and Merchantry Associates
- Have you identified all your vendors and merchantry associates?
- Do you have all Merchantry Socialize Agreements in place with all merchantry associates?
- Have you performed due diligence on your merchantry toadies to assess their merchantry compliance?
- Are you tracking and reviewing your Merchantry Socialize Agreements annually?
- Do you have Confidentiality Agreements with non-business socialize vendors?
Data Breaches
- Have you identified all your vendors and merchantry associates?
- Do you have all Merchantry Socialize Agreements in place with all merchantry associates?
- Have you performed due diligence on your merchantry toadies to assess their merchantry compliance?
- Are you tracking and reviewing your Merchantry Socialize Agreements annually?
- Do you have Confidentiality Agreements with non-business socialize vendors?
Breaches
- Do you have a specified process for incidents and breaches?
- Do you have the worthiness to track and manage the investigations of all incidents?
- Are you worldly-wise to provide reporting of minor or meaningful breaches or incidents?
- Does your staff have the worthiness to anonymously report an incident?
HIPAA Security Rules
The growth of forfeit tenancy programs in the healthcare industry is pushing organizations to reap the benefits of mobile devices, helping alimony financing to a minimum. BYOD policies indulge physicians, nurses, and other healthcare workers to bring personal devices to work. Few organizations segregate to supply company-owned devices to maintain tenancy and protect their networks.
However, HIPAA-covered entities or merchantry toadies that segregate to use mobile devices in their organizations need to implement HIPAA mobile device policy to protect patient data. Mobile devices bring convenience, but they moreover come with several risks. Without unobjectionable controls, mobile devices can be compromised and the ePHI stored on them exposed.
MDM and HIPAA Compliance
Organizations are responsible and subject for developing mobile device procedures and policies that protect patient health information. To manage mobile devices in a healthcare setting, organizations need to build a risk management strategy that includes implementing device safeguards to reduce risks. The strategy should moreover include regular maintenance of mobile devices.
A hair-trigger point to consider when developing mobile device policies and procedures for HIPAA compliance is a mobile device management solution for managing BYOD policies, setting restrictions on usage, and security configuration.
How does Scalefusion MDM help with HIPAA Compliance?
With Scalefusion, healthcare organizations can unzip security controls to manage staff’s personal devices, without compromising privacy.
1. Encryption to protect ePHI – HIPAA rules instruct that devices must “Implement technical security measures to baby-sit versus unauthorized wangle to electronic protected health information that is stuff transmitted over an electronic communications network.” Encryption helps when patient data is transmitted between Covered Entities and Merchantry Associates. Using Scalefusion, admins can enforce encryption on storage media used on mobile devices.
2. Device-level protection with passcode policies and remote device lock – Deploying passwords is the first line of defense when it comes to device security. With Scalefusion, organizations can set strong password policies that pinpoint the length and complexity of passwords. Admins can remotely lock devices if they are lost or stolen. They can moreover remotely wipe any patient data present on such devices.
3. Configure VPN settings to secure network connectivity – Admins can remotely configure VPN settings to indulge secure wangle to corporate networks. Controls can be set to prevent users from connecting to Public Wi-Fi networks. Admins can push policies to ensure users stay unfluctuating to corporate networks when accessed remotely.
4. Control app usage – The usage of unregulated mobile apps is a major security risk. Scalefusion’s mobile using management distributes only permitted apps and ensures those apps are kept up to stage with security updates. Organizations can moreover push their in-house apps made for their staff.
5. Device sharing for shift workers – Scalefusion helps organizations manage financing by enabling device sharing between healthcare professionals. Admins can set up multiple profiles with dynamic policies. The profiles automatically transpiration on the shared devices based on a particular time or geographical location as scheduled. This moreover ensures that when the devices used within the physical boundaries of a healthcare space are moved out, wangle to work apps and data can be blocked.
6. BYOD management – The familiarity and convenience of using personal devices at work modernize the productivity and workflows of healthcare staff. However, BYOD limits the tenancy in managing sensitive data, increasing the chances of leaks or misuse to occur. Using Scalefusion MDM, companies can create two separate profiles for personal and work use, thereby preventing sharing of data. IT admins have tenancy over the work profile (content, apps, policies) and zero tenancy over the personal profile.
7. Implement data loss prevention (DLP) – DLP aims to prevent unauthorized wangle to sensitive information. Organizations can pinpoint DLP policies on how to protect data. For example, the DLP policy should prevent staff from capturing screenshots of work data. IT admins can implement such a policy with Scalefusion to protect data within Office 365 apps on Android and iOS devices using Microsoft DLP.
Wrapping Up
Data protection regulations like HIPAA for the healthcare industry help protect people’s most personal information. While the transition of PHI into electronic format has increased mobility and efficiency, it has moreover increased security risks. The right device management solution will help organizations comply with guidelines while lamister paying hefty fines. Healthcare professionals can focus on providing quality service to their patients by taking superintendency of ever-evolving regulations.
Resources: