COVID-19 Changes HIPAA Compliance, But Caution Necessary - Healthcare Risk Management

​Stephanie Winer Schreiber, shareholder in the firm's Healthcare section, discusses the importance of additional HIPAA training post-pandemic in a Healthcare Risk Management article, "COVID-19 Changes HIPAA Compliance, But Caution Necessary​​."

Covered entities should plan for additional HIPAA training as soon as the pandemic subsides enough to allow it, suggests Stephanie Winer Schreiber, JD, shareholder with Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney in Pittsburgh.

All communications about HIPAA compliance during the pandemic, especially any regarding a change in policy or procedures, should emphasize that it applies only "during the period" and "until further notice," she says.

"It would be a very wise endeavor for healthcare providers to engage in some additional HIPAA training post-COVID 19," Schreiber recommends. "Start thinking now about what you will need to tell your employees about rolling back to the way you previously addressed HIPAA compliance, what you learned about your program during the crisis. Maybe people can tell you about how your policies and procedures worked."