HIPAA Compliance - Are You Protected?

Technology is only as secure as the people behind the controls, while HIPAA is almost entirely about determining and enforcing policies that ensure privacy and security. Technology does not make networks secure; these are only tools that enable security. The HIPAA solution lies in making security and confidentiality part of the entire health organization business process. From a corporate standpoint, security and confidentiality touch diverse areas of the organization and policy. While an organization may deploy a multi-layered technology solution, ultimately the responsibility lies with the people who manage the data itself, and to the HIPAA Manager of each organization. No one technology will be sufficient to achieve complete security. In order to address the reality of HIPAA regulations, organizations must act by planning a layered, defense-in-depth approach to securing and protecting networks and information. Additional benefits will accrue to compliant health care organizations, including increased network time, productivity and better business continuity.

The Privacy Rule proposes standards to protect the privacy of health information either maintained or transmitted during administrative or financial transactions. The rule formalizes the rights of individuals to their patient data and protects them against unauthorized use or disclosure of that information. These protections also address growing public concerns that electronic technology in the health care industry may result in breaches of privacy. There have recently been several high-profile breaches of privacy in the industry which, through simple human error, disclosed vital patient information. Under HIPAA, health care organizations must guarantee their customers that private information collected, maintained, used, or transmitted will remain entirely confidential in order to administer and provide services.

This rule defines the security standard as a series of requirements and implementations that health care organizations must include in their operations to ensure the security of individual's electronic health information. Each organization may identify its own security requirements and create, deploy, and maintain appropriate security to address its own business needs. The Rule is divided in four sections, each of which must be documented for certification purposes.

Administrative Procedures: This sets formal practices to manage a security policy that protect data and regulates the behavior of personnel in relation to the protection of data.

Physical Safeguards: This section defines guidelines for the protect of physical computer systems and equipment from natural and environmental hazards, as well as intrusion. Physical safeguards include the use of locks, keys, and administrative measures used to control access to computer systems and facilities.

Technical Security Services: These guidelines include technology and vendor neutral recommendations about the processes put in place to control access to stored information.

Technical Security Mechanisms: This section includes technology and vendor neutral recommendations about the processes that are put in place to prevent unauthorized access to data that is transmitted over a communications network.

At Wabash Electric Information Technology, we are experts in securing and protecting confidential information in transit and within networks. Our Security Solutions prevent prying eyes from intercepting sensitive patient data as it is transmitted between organizations, protects that data as it is archived on your system, and protects the entire network from intrusion or corruption.