HIPAA Guidelines and Enforcement: Penalties and Consequences for Non-Compliance
The sensitivity of health information inspired federal governments to establish compliance rules to guarantee that patients’ privacy is always respected.
Protected health information (PHI) and electronic PHI are now more secure thanks to the passage of the Healthcare Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
You run the danger of receiving harsh fines if your business doesn’t follow HIPAA guidelines. In this article, we will discuss Penalties and Consequences for Non-Compliance.
What are the Penalties for HIPAA Non-Compliance?
If you violate HIPAA rules, the regulatory authority will keep track of you and, if you are found guilty, you will be required to pay fines.
The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), which added extra fines to encourage widespread compliance, reinforced these restrictions.
For HIPAA noncompliance, the Office of Civil Rights has the authority to levy a number of tier-based fines. Whether the covered entity/business associate violated the HIPAA rules willfully or accidentally will determine how much of a fine is assessed.

For first-tier infractions, the fine can range from $100 for each unaware violation to a maximum of $25,000 for repeated offenses. However, based on the regulatory body’s evaluation, this sum can increase to $50,000 for each infraction and a maximum of $1.5 million annually.
If you are subject to the second-tier penalty, you must pay a maximum fine of $1000 per infraction and a maximum yearly fine of $100,000. The maximum fine for any justifiable reason for violation is $50,000, with a cap of $1.5 million per year, just like in the first tier.
The third-tier sanctions are intended for covered entities and business partners who willfully disregarded the HIPAA rules. Each offence at this level has a minimum fine of $10,000 and repeat offences can result in annual fines of up to $250,000.
You can be fined up to $50,000 each infraction, or $1.5 per year, at the most. You can infer from these punishments that breaking the law can result in expensive penalties, whether you did so on purpose or accidentally. In order to escape the consequences, you must always do your study and adhere to the rules.