Answer:
According to Kate Borten, president of The Marblehead Group Inc., the American Medical Association states that the Office of Civil Rights oversees this process. "It is a fact (written in the law) that enforcement of the HIPAA Administrative Simplification rules is complaint-driven only -- and at least for the foreseeable future," Borten said. "Privacy rule complaints go to the U.S. Department's Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office for Civil Rights. The OCR handles civil penalties and refers potential criminal complaints to the Department of Justice. All other rules under Administrative Simplification, including the security rule, will be enforced by HHS' Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Office of HIPAA Standards… There is no government agency or other body that officially audits proactively for HIPAA compliance," Borten said.
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