HIPAA Compliance Checklist

July 03, 2022, Crawford and O brein

The HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules, the HIPAA Breach Notification Rules, the HIPAA Omnibus Rules, and the HIPAA Enforcement Rules all went into the creation of our HIPAA compliance checklist. As part of HIPAA IT compliance, the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act of 2009 has a significant role to play as well.

A company must adhere to all the above-mentioned rules and laws to be HIPAA compliant. All items on our HIPAA compliance checklist must be met without exception for your organization to be fully compliant with HIPAA. There is no hierarchy of importance when it comes to HIPAA laws;

• It would be best to evaluate which mandatory annual audits and evaluations are relevant to your company.
• Analyze the results of the audits and evaluations and record any issues.
• It's essential to keep detailed records of your cleanup efforts, so you can look back on them yearly and make adjustments as needed.
• Appoint a HIPAA Compliance and/or Privacy and/or Security Officer if the organization doesn't already.
• Ensure the authorized HIPAA Compliance Officer organizes annual HIPAA training for all employees.
• Documentation of HIPAA policies and procedures and employee training and certification should be a priority.
• Review BAAs annually to ensure they are compliant with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.
• Inquire into how HHS OCR receives reports of breaches from employees and how they are reported.
This HIPAA compliance checklist will help you determine if your firm is subject to the regulations. Here is a 2022 HIPAA compliance checklist that you can use to make sure your firm is adhering to the standards.

1. Audits and Assessments

Perform internal audits to ensure data safety, including security and privacy evaluations.
• Use the NIST to determine which of the HIPAA Rule SP 800-66, Revision 1's mandated yearly audits and assessments applies to your organization.
• Perform the necessary assessments and audits, examine the findings, and record any problems or shortcomings.
• Remediation plans should be developed and documented thoroughly to address any faults or inadequacies.
• Make sure the plans are implemented, analyze the results, and adjust the strategy if necessary.

2. Risk Analysis

Using NIST recommendations do regular risk assessments:
• Perform a risk assessment for the entire company.
• Risk assessments should be carried out on systems that store ePHI.
• The first step is to create a risk management plan.
• Identify and assess potential threats to ePHI in terms of likelihood and impact.
• Adequately protect sensitive documents and the identified threats by implementing appropriate security measures.
• Establish guidelines for best practices and administration of security measures.

3. Data Safeguards

Protect data integrity, availability, and confidentiality by using data safeguards.
Technical Safeguards
• Controls and integrity audit: Integrity controls should be implemented to ensure accurate and high-quality data. Keep an eye out for unusual activities by installing auditing solutions that track file entry and modification.
• Encryption: When communicating ePHI via external networks, encrypt it following NIST cryptographic requirements.
• Authentication, authorization, and access controls: Do a check to make sure that only the right people have access to private electronic records. Passcodes and key codes should only be accessible by a select few people.
Physical Safeguards
• Disposing of documents: Never dispose of confidential documents without first shredding them.
• Workstation safety: ePHI should only be accessible to a small number of people at a time. Policies should be in place to govern the use of these workstations.
• Controls for media and mobile devices: A policy should be implemented to erase ePHI from mobile devices when lost or stolen or when their owners leave an organization so that the data cannot be reaccessed.

Administrative Safeguards

• Employee security education and awareness: Teach your workers how to recognize and report malware and follow good ePHI access administration and safety procedures.
• Plans for contingencies: In a crisis, devise a plan to ensure the integrity and security of electronic health information (ePHI).

4. Employee Training and Communications

All staff should receive proper cybersecurity training, and the necessity of HIPAA compliance should be emphasized to the team.
• All employees should receive a copy of the company's privacy rules and procedures.
• Ensure all employees have read and signed off on your HIPAA policies and procedures.
• A basic HIPAA compliance training course is required for all employees.
• You should keep a record of any HIPAA-compliant training your employees have completed and the certification they have signed.
• In a privacy breach, devise appropriate consequences and disciplinary measures.

5. Designated Privacy Official

Appoint a person or office in charge of issues relating to privacy:
• Develop and implement a privacy policy with the help of an official (e.g., a HIPAA compliance, privacy, or security officer).
• The authorized HIPAA compliance officer should conduct annual HIPAA training for all employees.

6. Business Associates

Monitor your business colleagues' compliance with HIPAA standards regularly:
• Find out who in your company might be receiving, transmitting, maintaining, processing, or otherwise dealing with personal health information (PHI).
• Every business partner should have a written agreement outlining the terms of their relationship.
• Review BAAs and HIPAA compliance on an annual basis
• Do your due diligence on business partners by documenting it in writing and proving your diligence to others.
7. Breach Notification Process Checklist
Set up procedures and mechanisms to deal with security incidents:
• Be on the lookout for and take charge of investigations into any occurrences involving the safety of PHI.
• Be sure to set up disciplinary policies and practices if there is a violation of the mitigation criteria and guidelines.
• Set up a system for reporting all occurrences and violations.
• Set up protocols for notifying patients, OCR, and the media of security breaches. Develop methods for informing patients.

Comments