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HIPAA Compliant News Articles and Enforcement
New Jersey Doctor Sentenced To 14 Months In Prison For Taking Bribes In Test-Referrals Scheme Involving New Jersey Clinical Lab
NEWARK, N.J. – A doctor with a medical practice in Montclair, New Jersey, was sentenced today to 14 months in prison for accepting bribes in exchange for test referrals as part of a long-running and elaborate scheme operated by Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services LLC (BLS), of Parsippany, New Jersey, its president and numerous associates, U.S. Attorney…
Dallas Physician and His Employee Arrested for Alleged $5.2 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme
A physician who ran a medical house call service business in Dallas, and an employee of that business were arrested this morning on charges related to their alleged participation in a $5.2 million health care fraud scheme. Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney John R. Parker…
Improper Dumping Lawsuit Filed Against HIPAA Business Associate By Illinois AG
Lisa Madigan, the Illinois Attorney General, has filed a lawsuit against a Northbrook HIPAA Business Associate (BA) for failing to destroy medical records prior to disposal. The BA is alleged to have exposed the PHI of at least 1,500 individual patients. The complaint says that the attorney general’s investigators found 1,500 medical records at Shred…
Top 10 Questions Most Organizations Fail During a HIPAA Audit
Top 10 Questions Most Organizations Fail During a HIPAA Audit Forget about a full-blown HIPAA audit with over 192 questions for covered entities (CE’s), most organizations fail and are considered out of compliance within the first 10 questions. HIPAA in the past few years has become the latest 5 letter bad word in the healthcare…
Department of Justice Releases Breach Response Best Practice Guide
The Cybersecurity Unit of the U.S Department of Justice (DOJ) has produced a new set of guidelines to assist organizations prepare for data breaches to enable them to take prompt action to mitigate damage and address security vulnerabilities. The DOJ felt that smaller organizations were unsure about the correct breach response, and aimed its guidance…
$125,000 Settlement Reached with Pharmacy for Improperly Disposing Patient Health Records
The mega data breaches to hit large insurers and healthcare providers have been making the headlines in recent months; however the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) showed yesterday that even smaller healthcare providers must abide by HIPAA Rules or face the consequences. Yesterday, the OCR issued a statement on…
Starting July 2015 PHI Data Encryption Mandatory for the State of New Jersey
New Jersey Governor, Chris Christie, signed a new law in January that extends the reach of HIPAA, calling for New Jersey healthcare providers to make greater efforts to keep the electronic health records of patients secure. The new law will go into effect July 2015 and requires all covered entities to use data encryption software on…
Operator of Detroit Adult Day Care Center and Two Home Health Care Company Owners Sentenced in $29 Million Medicare Fraud Conspiracy
WASHINGTON – The former operator of a Detroit adult day care center and two former owners of Detroit-area home health care companies were sentenced to prison today for their roles in a $29 million Medicare fraud scheme. Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade of…
Texas Doctor Sentenced to 135 Months in Federal Prison for Health Care Fraud Scheme
Texas Doctor Sentenced to Prison for Health Care Fraud Scheme TYLER, Texas – A 63-year-old Dallas County, Texas, physician, has been sentenced to federal prison for health care fraud and identity theft violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales. Tariq Mahmood, 63, of Cedar Hill, Texas, was found guilty…