Interesting ... HIPAA has no teeth
Even though over 19,420 HIPAA complaints/violations have been officially lodged since HIPAA went into effect, it has resulted in zero fines. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/04/AR2006060400672.html This is amazing, but unfortunately, not surprising. Other than two criminal prosecutions on specific individuals, there appears to be no penalties for organizations violating the HIPPA Act. Like the non-successfully prosecutions of SOX violators, it tells corporate America that it's cheaper to not meet the guidelines. If you add in the fact that only three companies were fined in 2004 for hiring illegal immigrants http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/05/10/dobbs.enforcement/index.html (even though they make up 12 million of our work force), it makes you wonder why we even bother going through with making our various "security" laws? It's as if Congress passes our financial, security, and privacy laws to make consumers happy, but then behind the scenes promise business that they really won't prosecute violators...so everyone "wins"! What is frustrating is that with non-enforcement of existing laws it is hard to place the blame on the correct agency. We can't blame Congress since they actually passed the law (unless they under funded the compliance checking). We probably can't blame the enforcers because they are just doing what they are told from their superiors above. So, who gets the blame? All of them?? Us, for putting up with it? If I was the CIO at one our nation's hospitals, I might actually decrease my HIPAA compliance budget this year. If it's a law without any teeth, why waste the funds when there are so many other competing objectives? Posted by Roger Grimes on June 5, 2006 05:33 AM ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Message: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=i:5:208104 Archives: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/threads.cfm/5 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=s:5 Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.5 Donations & Support: http://www.houseoffusion.com/tiny.cfm/54
