HIPAA Updates

A New Era for Health Information Privacy and Cybersecurity Oversight? The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced a significant restructuring of its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) on May 18, creating three dedicated divisions: • Conscience and Religious Freedom Division • Civil Rights Division • Health Information Privacy, Data, and Cybersecurity Division While the reorganization does not directly change HIPAA requirements, it may signal a heightened federal focus on healthcare privacy, cybersecurity, and data protection.

Amidst all of the other events in Washington DC in January, a law was passed that amended the HIPAA Regulations. . The amendment requires the department of Health and Human Services to take certain items into account during a HIPAA investigation. The text of the bill reads as follows: