HIPAA Audits and Enforcement Updates
Finally, the HIPAA Audit program is required by law and is not going away any time soon. While HHS may still be absorbing the results of the last round, we now know what kind of questions and expectations may be involved in the final program, and being ready to survive a HIPAA Audit is essential. The HIPAA Random Audit program is being refocused and redefined to make it more relevant to finding and correcting some of the most prevalent security and privacy compliance issues, based on the experience gained in the 2012 and 2016 audits and in the HIPAA Breach Notification process. Learning Objectives: HIPAA Audits have been few and far between in the past, but that’s now changing – the HHS is now auditing HIPAA covered entities and business associates even if there have been no complaints or problems reported. Fines and penalties for violations of the HIPAA regulations have been significantly increased and now include mandatory fines for willful neglect of the rules that begin at $10,000 minimum and can reach $50,000 per day. The HIPAA Audit Protocol will be examined along with the sets of questions asked at other HIPAA audits previously. Find out what HHS OCR is likely to ask you if you are selected for an audit, and what you’ll have to have prepared already when they do. Find out what the rules are that you need to comply with and what policies you can adopt that can help you come into compliance. Learn how having a good compliance process can help you stay compliant more easily. Find out what you’ll need to have documented to survive an audit and avoid fines. Learn how to export the contents of the HIPAA Audit Protocol and use them as the foundation of your compliance activities and documentation.
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