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HIPAA Compliant News Articles and Enforcement
Former Hospital Employee Sentenced to 3 Years in Federal Prison for Stealing PHI and Filing Fraudulent Tax Returns
Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Susan C. Bucklew today sentenced Shanakia Benton to three years in federal prison for wrongful disclosure of individual identifiable health information and wire fraud. As part of her sentence, the Court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $77,239, the proceeds of the wire fraud. Benton pleaded…
Read MoreMedical company has to pay ransom to regain access to files encrypted by cybercriminals
Marin Medical Practices Concepts (MMPC), a Novato, CA-based provider of EMR and medical billing services, has announced that its systems were recently taken out of action by ransomware. Cybercriminals succeeded in installing ransomware on its network on July 27, 2016. While patient data were not encrypted, physicians were prevented from accessing patient data as the…
Read MoreOCR announces largest ever HIPAA settlement with a single covered entity
Last month, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced two large settlements with covered entities to resolve alleged HIPAA violations. However, even the $2.7 million and $2.75 million settlements at OHSU and UMMC were small in comparison to the latest enforcement action. OCR has just announced it has agreed…
Read MoreDoctor Heads to Prison for Home Health Care Fraud
Today, U.S. District Judge David Hittner, who presided over the trial, handed Dailey a 63-month sentence. He was further ordered to pay restitution of $913,620. Dailey will also be required to serve a term of three years of supervised release following completion of the prison term. At trial, the jury heard that from approximately 2009…
Read MoreOCR Phase 2 HIPAA Audits: Documentation Requests Issued
The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has now selected covered entities from its pool of eligible organizations and has chosen 167 for a HIPAA compliance audit. Covered entities selected for a compliance audit have now been notified by email. Those organizations now have just 10 days to respond to…
Read MoreWidespread HIPAA vulnerabilities result in $2.7 million settlement with Oregon Health & Science University
Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) has agreed to settle potential violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Privacy and Security Rules following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR) that found widespread and diverse problems at OHSU, which will be…
Read MorePhiladelphia Business Associate Agrees to $650,000 OCR Settlement
On June 24, 2016, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) published details of a resolution agreement that was reached with Catholic Health Care Services of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia (CHCS). CHCS has agreed to settle alleged HIPAA violations with the OCR and has agreed to implement a Corrective Action…
Read MoreNational Health Care Fraud Takedown Results in Charges against 301 Individuals for Approximately $900 Million in False Billing
Most Defendants Charged and Largest Alleged Loss Amount in Strike Force History Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell announced today an unprecedented nationwide sweep led by the Medicare Fraud Strike Force in 36 federal districts, resulting in criminal and civil charges against 301 individuals,…
Read MoreNorth Richland Hills Physician Admits Role in Health Care Fraud Conspiracy
DALLAS, Texas — A licensed physician from North Richland Hills, Texas, Byron Felton Conner, 48, pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud stemming from a scheme to defraud Medicare through the submission of false claims for physician home visits and home health care services. The announcement was made today…
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