If you’re covered by HIPAA, then you’re required to have certain policies and procedures for HIPAA compliance. However, that’s easier said than done.
You’re probably wondering how often HIPAA training is required. In this post, we’ll discuss HIPAA training requirements so that you can stay in full compliance with essential regulations.
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What Does HIPAA Say About Training?
The HIPAA privacy rule says you must train your team members on protecting health information.
This does not just involve paid employees. It involves anyone who is also a trainee, volunteer, business associate, or otherwise under your direction. Technically, you must provide necessary and appropriate training for the workforce members to carry out their functions within the covered entity.
Ultimately, the HIPAA training should be customized for every role in your healthcare organization.
Is HIPAA Training Required Annually?
Many healthcare organizations ask, “How long is HIPAA training good for?” or “How often does HIPAA training need to be completed?”
Your training must begin with a new member of your workforce within a reasonable period of time after they join your entity. This typically ranges from a couple of days to a couple of weeks.
Additionally, training must be implemented when there are changes in policies or procedures in a reasonable time frame. That being said, HIPAA does not define a specific time frame for refresher training.
But it does suggest that you have the occasional training session on an ongoing basis. Most healthcare organizations opt to have an annual HIPAA training session in order to maintain their compliance program and prevent violations.
That being said, the answer to “how often should HIPAA training be completed” is ultimately up to you. However, annual training is the industry best practice.
Frequently Asked Questions — How Often Is HIPAA Training Required?
How does training differ for different workforce categories?
Public-facing roles require more training on policies related to the minimum necessary standard. Team members who don’t deal with the public should seek more training on administrative requirements.
How can you avoid unnecessary training?
The HIPAA background and its evolution are not necessary for day-to-day roles. This may be distracting instead of actually helping your workforce focus on compliance. Therefore you should stay focused on actual regulations.
Why must every member of the workforce have security awareness training?
Anyone who has access to a device that can access PHI must undergo HIPAA training.
A cybercriminal could access the device, but the average employee will not know how to combat the attack.
Employees must understand the importance of ePHI and its sharing privileges in order to properly protect the data on a day-to-day basis.
What should you include in HIPAA training?
Risk analysis should be the first step in determining what kind of training your team member should undergo. You can identify where your data may be vulnerable in order to fix these vulnerabilities with a robust solution.
Security officers should be able to revise training based on emerging vulnerabilities. Along with general HIPAA training for all employees, specialized training can be determined by role using a risk analysis approach.
Upgrade Your HIPAA Training Today
Reach out to ComplyAssistant today. Our user-friendly HIPAA compliant software helps you manage your compliance program — allowing you to conduct risk analysis, document management, and more.
Schedule a free demo and discover how your compliance management can transform with the right guidance.