HIPAA compliance will be a constantly evolving process. Therefore, this site will also evolve to add updates, links and MMA created forms, assessment tools and manuals.

Please contact us if you would like OPTIMUM MANAGEMENT to help you with your staff training and other compliance activities to help assess your current level of compliance and devise corrective action strategies.HIPAA Privacy & Security

HIPAA Privacy & Security

The Privacy and Security Rules apply only to covered entities. Individuals, organizations, and agencies that meet the definition of a covered entity under HIPAA must comply with the Rules' requirements to protect the privacy and security of health information and must provide individuals with certain rights with respect to their health information. If an entity is not a covered entity, it does not have to comply with the Privacy Rule or the Security Rule.

Covered Entities

A covered entity is one of the following:

A Health Care Provider*
This includes providers such as:

• Doctors
• Clinics
• Psychologists
• Dentists
• Chiropractors
• Nursing Homes
• Pharmacies

*But only if they transmit information in an electronic form in connection with a transaction for which HHS has adopted a standard.

 A Health Plan

This includes:

• Health insurance Companies
• HMOs
• Company health plans
• Government programs that pay for health care, such as Medicare, Medicaid, and the military and veterans health care programs

A Health Care Clearinghouse

This includes entities that process nonstandard health information they receive from another entity into a standard (i.e., standard electronic format or data content), or vice versa.

Are you a Covered Entity?

 View materials about the Privacy Rule for small providers, small health plans and other small businesses.

Guidance Materials for Covered Entities 

• Summary of the Privacy Rule - This is a summary of the key elements of the Privacy Rule, including who is covered, what information is protected, and how covered entities can use and disclose protected health information.
• Guidance on Significant Aspects of the Privacy Rule - A collection of documents explaining many provisions of the Privacy Rule including business associates, special topics such as disclosures for public health and research, and incidental uses and disclosures.
• Summary of the Security Rule - This is a summary of the key elements of the Security Rule, including what administrative, physical, and technical safeguards covered entities must have in place to protect the security of electronic protected health information.
• Guidance on How to Comply with the Security Rule - A collection of documents explaining how the Department expects covered entities to achieve substantial compliance with the Security Rule.
• Security Risks to Electronic Health Information from Peer-to-Peer File Sharing Applications - The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has developed a guide to Peer-to-Peer (P2P) security issues for businesses that collect and store sensitive information.
• Safeguarding Electronic Protected Health Information on Digital Copiers - The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has tips on how to safeguard sensitive data stored on the hard drives of digital copiers.
• Fast Facts for Covered Entities - Answers to many common questions and misconceptions about patient consent, incidental disclosures, child abuse reporting, electronic media, and other disclosures.
• Provider Guide: Communicating With a Patient's Family, Friends, or Other Persons Identified by the Patient - This is a guide for health care providers to help them determine when they can disclose a patient's health information to the patient's family, friends, or other identified by the patient.
• Guidance on the Application of FERPA and HIPAA to Student Health Records - This guide addresses school administrators, health care professionals, and others interested in how these two laws apply to student health records.
• Sign Up for the OCR Privacy Listserv - OCR has established a listserv to inform the public about Privacy and Security Rule FAQs, guidance, and technical assistance materials as they are released.
• Cybersecurity Awareness Training - This training, discuss describe different types of cybersecurity breaches and how to report them.
• Understanding Some of HIPAA's Permitted Uses and Disclosures - Topical fact sheets that provide examples of when PHI can be exchanged under HIPAA without first requiring a specific authorization from the patient, so long as other protections or conditions are met.
• Guidance on Significant Aspects of the Privacy Rule - A collection of documents explaining many provisions of the Privacy Rule.
• Guidance on Individuals' Right to Access Health Information - This guidance explains the importance of providing individuals with the ability to access and obtain a copy of their health information.
• Guidance on HIPAA and Workplace Wellness Programs- This guidance explains the ways in which health information collected from or created about participants in a wellness program offered as part of a group health plan is protected by HIPAA.
• Guidance Regarding Methods for De-identification of Protected Health Information in Accordance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule.
• Provider Guide: Communicating With a Patient's Family, Friends, or Other Persons Identified by the Patient - This is a guide for health care providers to help them determine when they can disclose a patient's health information to the patient's family, friends, or other identified by the patient.
• Guidance on Sharing Information Related to Mental Health - This guide addresses questions about when it is appropriate under the Privacy Rule for a health care provider to share information about a patient who is being treated for a mental health condition.
• Frequently Asked Questions About Family Medical History Information - These frequently asked questions and answers address how the Privacy Rule permits the use and disclosure of family medical history information.
• Frequently Asked Questions About the Disposal of Protected Health Information - These frequently asked questions and answers address how covered entities should dispose of protected health information pursuant to the Privacy and Security Rules.
• Guidance on HIPAA, Same-sex Marriage, and Sharing Information with Patients' Loved Ones
• FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions from the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Civil Rights
• HIPAA Complaint Form