HIPAA risk analysis tool available

In case you missed it, the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and Office of the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology (ONC) released last year a downloadable Security Risk Assessment (SRA) Tool to assist providers and professionals to perform HIPAA compliance risk assessments. It was designed primarily for small and medium-sized covered entities and business associates. The Tool is a self-contained, operating system (OS) independent application that is available at no cost, can be downloaded from Apple’s App Store. It guides users through each HIPAA requirement by presenting questions answerable as “yes” or “no” to indicate if there is a need for corrective action for any of the 156 question items. Guidance provides assistance in:

• Understanding the context of the question
• Considering the potential impacts to your PHI if the requirement is not met
• Seeing the actual safeguard language of the HIPAA Security Rule

The Tool can serve as the local repository for the information and does not send your data anywhere else. At any time during the risk assessment process, you can pause to view your current results. The results are available in printable PDF and Excel formats. For details on how to use the tool, download the SRA Tool User Guide. A paper-based version of the tool is also available:

• Administrative Safeguards
• Technical Safeguards
• Physical Safeguards