Watch out for fake Office of Civil Rights investigators, hospitals warned
HHS alerted hospitals and health systems of someone posing as an Office for Civil Rights (OCR) investigator to get patient health information, the American Hospital Association warned.
In a notice last week, the association said HIPAA-covered entities should notify their staff. All OCR investigators have email addresses end with @hhs.gov. If staff receive a phony email, they should ask for a confirming email from the hhs.gov email account.
The OCR has halted many investigations. In March, President Donald Trump announced that his administration would not be enforcing HIPAA penalties.
