Multiple Settlements with HHS for HIPAA Security Rule Violations & Data Breaches
By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law In September 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced three settlements to resolve alleged violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy and Security Rules. The settlements, totaling $10.6 million, stem from data breaches in which hackers were able to access […]
Colorado Judge Says Board of Pharmacy Must Hand Over Patient Identifying Data to DEA
By George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Health Law On April 22, 2020, a federal judge ordered the Colorado Board of Pharmacy to give the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) prescription drug monitoring program data on two pharmacies that the DEA is investigating. The data includes patient identifying information of more than 14,000 patients. The state must turn over […]
Certifying Emotional Support Animals and Protecting Your License, Part 1 of 3
By Amanda I. Forbes, J.D., and George F. Indest III, J.D., M.P.A., LL.M., Board Certified in Health Law In today’s stress-filed world if you are a mental health counselor or other professional counselor, it is likely that you will encounter a client seeking to obtain an Emotional Support Animal (ESA) designation letter from you. Providing such a letter may cause […]