‘HIPAA certified’ refers to a healthcare organization that is compliant with both HIPAA standards and their Privacy, Security, and Breach Notification Rules. This stamp of approval is usually awarded after a successful audit. Getting a HIPAA certification means a healthcare organization has been found to meet the standards of the Privacy, Security, and Breach Notification Rules of HIPAA.
Usually, this means a third-party certification company audits your organization to see if your practices meet HIPAA requirements, and if they do, you get approved.
Healthcare providers must be HIPAA-certified to comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. This certification is necessary to protect patient privacy and confidentiality.
There are many benefits to getting certified and accredited as HIPAA compliant. The most important benefit to getting this license is that it demonstrates to your patients that you take their privacy and security seriously and that you are approved and authorized to handle their information safely.
In an age where data breaches are increasingly common, patients are becoming more concerned about the safety of their personal information. By getting HIPAA certified, you demonstrate to your patients that you have taken the necessary steps to protect their information.
Have a question about HIPAA compliance? Check out our HIPAA compliance checklist.
In addition to gaining your patients’ trust, getting certified can help you avoid substantial fines. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act imposes strict penalties for covered entities that violate its provisions, including up to $1.5 million in fines for each violation.
You can avoid these costly penalties by ensuring you are HIPAA compliant.
Getting certified as HIPAA compliant can also help you improve your operations as it requires you to employ strong security measures to protect patient data. These same security measures can also help improve the optimization of your operations by preventing data breaches and protecting against other cyber threats.
HIPAA sets strict requirements for handling Protected Health Information (PHI) by covered entities. To ensure compliance with HIPAA, covered entities must obtain certification from a qualified third-party organization.
Several organizations offer HIPAA certification, but not all are created equal. When selecting a certifying organization, it is important to ensure they are accredited by the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The HHS website provides a list of all approved certifying organizations.
Once you have selected a certifying organization, you will need to complete their application process and pay any associated fees. Once your application has been approved, you will be required to complete an online or offline training program. After successfully completing the training program, you will then be issued a certificate of completion, which you can present to your clients or customers.
But first, there are a few actions that covered entities must take to become certified, including:
Covered entities that fail to meet these certification requirements will be subject to civil and/or criminal penalties.
Unlike covered entities, business associates must meet four certification requirements to be HIPAA compliant:
Business associates must also ensure that all employees, contractors, and subcontractors comply with HIPAA regulations. The business associate must provide training to these individuals and ensure they understand HIPAA requirements.
Additionally, they must implement appropriate policies and procedures to protect the privacy and security of protected health information (PHI). Finally, business associates must have a written contract with each subcontractor or third-party vendor who will have access to PHI.
There are a few things you need to do to become HIPAA-certified:
After successfully completing an accredited certification program and passing the written exam, you will be officially certified as a HIPAA professional! This certificate will allow you to show potential employers that you have the knowledge and skills necessary to work with protected health information.
But where do you learn all the material? You could either study on your own from books about HIPAA, or you can sign up for a course.
Here are some of the best HIPAA certification courses you can sign up for to learn the material and get certified.
HIPAA Exams has been considered one of the most trusted sources for HIPAA compliance since 2008. They are one of the few IACET-accredited providers with over 13 years of experience. HIPAA Exams provides IACET-accredited courses accepted throughout the US and can help you manage your yearly HIPAA and OSHA requirements.
Key features:
HIPAA exams provide the following features:
They also enable you to:
Cost: HIPAA exam offers affordable pricing in bundles that range from $29-$45 per user.
Biologix online Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act (HIPAA) training is all online and easy to use. Their HIPAA and HITECH training is designed to foster a privacy-conscious culture across an entire organization, whether your organization has few employees or thousands.
Their HIPAA training is for supervisors and employees of covered entities, business associates, and direct care providers. It is designed to engage employees and teach them the importance of safeguarding Protected Health Information to reduce your risk of a Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act (HIPAA) violation.
Cost: Biologix courses cost $10 each.
The CHP course examines the basics of the administrative simplification portion of HIPAA legislation. It also examines HIPAA transactions and code sets, identifiers, privacy, and security.
Their Certified HIPAA Professional certification training is designed to help you better understand HIPAA’s Administrative Simplification Act and how to create a framework for initiating and working towards a blueprint for HIPAA compliance.
Cost: $795 for the online study course and the online exam.
Want to get the latest updated information on staying HIPAA-compliant? Download our checklist.