Recently the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has fined a Mental Health service facility in Alaska $150K for failure to apply software patches. This incident contributed to a large malware-related breach in 2012, impacting more than 2,700 patients. This HIPAA settlement marks the first time the OCR has issued a penalty tied to unpatched software.
“Successful HIPAA compliance requires a common sense approach to assessing and addressing the risks to ePHI on a regular basis,” says OCR Director Jocelyn Samuels. “This includes reviewing systems for unpatched vulnerabilities and unsupported software that can leave patient information susceptible to malware and other risks.”
All medical professionals know that if you violate any of the HIPAA regulations, whether knowingly or not, you are considered liable and face the possibility of heavy fines and in some cases even jail time. Making sure any services you use are HIPAA compliant will save you in the end.
With the holiday time upon us and the New Year right around the corner, it is vital to make sure any and all systems and services you use at your Physicians office, Dentists office, Hospital, or any other health care facility are HIPAA Compliant. TeleMed offers Doctors, Dentists, and Hospitals many HIPPA Compliant services, including:
Contact us today for more information on our services.