The recent Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH Act), part of the federal stimulus bill, contained sweeping changes to HIPAA’s security and privacy requirements. These changes include:

• Increased criminal and civil penalties for noncompliance and new enforcement authority for state attorneys general
• Extension of HIPAA’s privacy and security requirements as well as penalties for violation of these requirements directly to business associates
• New restrictions on uses and disclosures of protected health information and increased individual rights
• Rigorous new standards for security breach notification for HIPAA-covered entities and their business associates

These changes directly impact colleges and universities that sponsor employer health plans that are self-insured; have medical clinics, counseling centers, other facilities, physicians, and other providers that are covered entities under HIPAA; or are business associates of covered entities, such as medical schools that provide certain services to hospitals.

This program will provide an overview of the changes to HIPAA as well as provide practical guidance for complying with these new obligations. The panel features HIPAA experts, Nina Lavoie of the University of Maine System, Barbara Bennett, partner with Hogan and Hartson, and Pietrina Scaraglino of New York University.

Note: This program assumes participants are familiar with HIPAA, including understanding the basic concepts and current HIPAA obligations of colleges and universities.