Content by Marianne Kolbasuk McGee

Prison Term in HIPAA Violation Case

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  February 20, 2015

A former Texas hospital worker has received a prison term for violating HIPAA, one of the toughest penalties yet for such a crime. Learn why some legal experts say more criminal prosecutions for HIPAA violations are likely.

Anthem Breach Sounds a Healthcare Alarm

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  February 5, 2015

The massive cyber-attack against health insurer Anthem makes it crystal clear that the healthcare sector has become a new favorite target for hackers. So what needs to be done to defend against hacks?

A Roadmap for National Health Data Exchange

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  January 30, 2015

Federal regulators have unveiled a draft roadmap for achieving nationwide secure health data exchange built on interoperable electronic health records systems within the next three years. Learn about the privacy and security components.

Improving Healthcare Application Security

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  January 28, 2015

Application security, especially for medical devices, needs to be a higher priority because vulnerable apps can create patient safety issues, expose patient information and raise the risk for ID theft and fraud, says security specialist Mike Weber.

Reporting HIPAA Breaches: A New Approach

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  January 26, 2015

As the number of major health data breaches continues to climb, federal regulators are taking steps to make the process of reporting breaches using online tools more efficient, hoping that will help ease the launching of investigations.

VASCO CEO on Authentication Trends

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  January 26, 2015

The increase in sophisticated hacking attacks will lead other sectors to follow the lead of the financial services industry in implementing multifactor authentication, says Ken Hunt, CEO of VASCO Data Security International.

HIPAA Enforcement: Waiting for Ramp Up

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  January 20, 2015

Some experts are concerned that the Department of Health and Human Services' Office for Civil Rights isn't taking bold enough action in stepping up its efforts to enforce HIPAA. Learn more about their areas of concern.

HIPAA Marketing Violation Affects 80,000

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  January 19, 2015

The inappropriate use and disclosure of patient information for marketing purposes by an insurer in Tennessee offers a reminder of the importance of complying with HIPAA's marketing-related provisions.

HIPAA Audits Are Still on Hold

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  January 13, 2015

The HHS Office for Civil Rights still has plenty of work to do before it can launch its long-promised next round of HIPAA compliance audits, says Director Jocelyn Samuels.

HITRUST Adds Privacy Controls to Framework

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  January 12, 2015

Healthcare organizations looking for help building an integrated approach to privacy and security compliance will soon have a new tool available. Find out the details about an updated framework from HITRUST.

Fidelis CEO on Breach Response

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  January 8, 2015

Ninety percent of even the largest global firms are susceptible to targeted attacks. And if adversaries want to get in, they can, says Peter George, CEO of Fidelis Security Systems, who discusses new security strategies.

Health InfoSec Survey Deadline Jan. 5

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  December 29, 2014

Jan. 5 is the deadline for participation in the fourth annual Healthcare Information Security Today survey, designed to examine the privacy and security priorities and challenges of healthcare organizations of all sizes.

Prepping for 2015's HIPAA Audits

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  December 29, 2014

As federal regulators plan to resume random HIPAA compliance audits in 2015, organizations should prepare by conducting their own mock audits, advise attorneys Alisa Chestler and Donna Fraiche.

Boston Children's Fined for Breach

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  December 22, 2014

For the second time in less than a month, the Massachusetts attorney general has fined a hospital for a data breach - this time Boston Children's Hospital. Learn why experts expect to see more state and federal breach sanctions in 2015.

OCR, ONC Get Flat Fiscal 2015 Budgets

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee  •  December 19, 2014

The fiscal 2015 federal budget provides two agencies responsible for health information security and privacy activities with flat funding. Find out what plans are on hold, and why Congress wants greater scrutiny of EHR system interoperability.