HIPAA Incident Response Plan Template- The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) is a federal law that mandates the adoption of national standards. To prevent sensitive patient health information from disclosure. Especially without the consent or knowledge of the patient.
Here is what you should know about the incident response plan for healthcare.
HIPAA Incident Response Plan Template
An incident is any event that has the potential to cause harm to individuals and systems of a healthcare organization.
For example, medical records of a patient are accessed and sent to his/her spouse without the knowledge of the patient. Or an unauthorized employee viewing the medical records of a patient without authorization, etc.
An incident response plan is a plan in case of an incident. For example, it describes how an organization will respond to security breaches and other network threats. So the response plan will include procedures for reporting, tracking, and resolving incidents.
Why the Healthcare Needs Incident Response Plan
Any security incident can cause a HIPAA breach, and while technology is important in the prevention of such incidents, it is not sufficient. Healthcare organizations need to comply with HIPAA regulations and must establish policies and procedures to prevent and respond to security incidents.
Healthcare organizations are required by law to establish policies and procedures for responding to any security incident that could result in a breach of PHI. This includes:
Adhering to HIPAA Rules and Security Standards: HIPAA requires healthcare organizations to follow specific rules for protecting the privacy and security of PHI. Every organization covered by HIPAA must implement policies and procedures that protect the privacy and security of PHI, including:
- Implementing physical safeguards;
- Accessing restricted areas;
- Restricting hardware access; and
- Restricting software access.
What the Incident Response Plan Should Be
Make sure to create the Incident Response Plan in such a way that it is easy to identify the roles and responsibilities of each individual within the organization.
The Incident Response Plan should describe how security breaches are reported internally within the organization. For example, through an internal help desk. As well as how individuals should report security breaches or other network threats externally (e.g., through law enforcement).
The Incident Response Plan may also include contact information for external resources (e.g., law enforcement agencies).
It is important for organizations to periodically review their security policies and procedures to ensure that they are up-to-date and still effective in reducing risks to their networks and systems.
This review should take place at least annually by conducting an internal audit of policies and procedures, followed by updating as necessary.
HIPAA Incident Response Plan Template
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Security Rule governs HIPAA. HIPAA, enacted in 1996, provides national standards to protect patient health information against unauthorized use or disclosure.
It applies to Protected Health Information (PHI) held by any HIPAA-covered entity, which includes healthcare providers, health plans, health care clearinghouses, or any business associate of these covered entities that perform certain administrative functions on their behalf (such as billing or data analysis).
