5 most common HIPAA violations physicians should watch for

Hospitals are the most common violators of HIPAA privacy regulations, followed by private practices, outpatient facilities, pharmacies and health plans, according to a March 3 report from the American Medical Association.

HHS' Office for Civil Rights, which is responsible for enforcing HIPAA privacy rules, regularly tracks the compliance issues most often alleged in HIPAA complaints.

The five most common HIPAA compliance issues, as compiled by the HHS' Office for Civil Rights:

1. Impermissible uses and disclosures of protected health information
   
   
2. Lack of safeguards of protected health information
   
   
3. Lack of patient access to their protected health information
   
   
4. Lack of administrative safeguards of electronic protected health information
   
   
5. Use or disclosure of more than the minimum necessary protected health information