Office for Civil Rights

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released a fact sheet clarifying violations of HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) for which a business associate can be held directly liable. The fact sheet outlines 10 specific circumstances for which OCR has authority to take enforcement

The long awaited final rule, released yesterday by the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) of the Department of Health and Human Services, modifies the HIPAA Privacy, Security, Breach and Enforcement Rules and is comprised of four final rules which implement the statutory requirements of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH)