HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) Compliance with SCF Connect
Use SCF Connect to map your security controls to HIPAA, assess maturity, and achieve audit readiness — all from a single GRC platform built on the Secure Controls Framework.
What Is HIPAA?
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) establishes national standards for protecting the privacy and security of individuals' health information. The HIPAA Security Rule specifies administrative, physical, and technical safeguards that covered entities and business associates must implement to protect electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI). The Privacy Rule governs the use and disclosure of PHI in any form.
HIPAA applies to covered entities (health plans, healthcare clearinghouses, and healthcare providers) and their business associates — any organization that creates, receives, maintains, or transmits PHI on behalf of a covered entity. Violations can result in civil penalties ranging from $100 to $50,000 per violation, with annual maximums of $1.5 million per violation category, plus potential criminal penalties.
SCF Connect maps both the HIPAA Administrative Simplification provisions and the HIPAA Security Rule (aligned with NIST SP 800-66 R2) to the Secure Controls Framework. This gives healthcare organizations and their vendors a complete view of their HIPAA obligations, integrated with any other frameworks they need to satisfy — such as SOC 2, NIST CSF, or state health privacy laws.
Who Needs HIPAA Compliance?
- Hospitals, clinics, and healthcare provider organizations
- Health insurance companies and health plans
- Healthcare clearinghouses
- Business associates handling PHI (IT vendors, billing companies, cloud providers)
- Health technology companies and digital health startups
How SCF Connect Helps with HIPAA
Automatic Control Mapping
SCF Connect maps SCF controls directly to HIPAA requirements. Select the framework and your required controls are identified instantly.
Maturity Assessment
Assess each control against the SCF Capability Maturity Model (SP-CMM) to understand your current posture and track improvement over time.
Evidence Collection
Generate Evidence Request Lists (ERLs) specific to your HIPAA controls. Know exactly what documentation you need for your audit.
Gap Analysis
Use the SCRMS methodology to identify gaps between your compliance requirements and your actual security posture, then prioritize remediation.
Compliance Reporting
Generate detailed reports showing your HIPAA compliance status, control maturity scores, and evidence collection progress.
Multi-Framework Support
Already mapped to another framework? Add HIPAA and see how your existing controls satisfy additional requirements — no duplicate work.
Frequently Asked Questions About HIPAA
What is HIPAA?
HIPAA is a federal law that establishes national standards for protecting individuals' health information. It includes the Privacy Rule (governing use and disclosure of PHI), the Security Rule (requiring safeguards for ePHI), and the Breach Notification Rule (requiring disclosure of data breaches).
Who must comply with HIPAA?
HIPAA applies to covered entities (healthcare providers, health plans, and healthcare clearinghouses) and their business associates — any organization that handles Protected Health Information (PHI) on behalf of a covered entity, including IT vendors, cloud providers, billing services, and consultants.
What are the penalties for HIPAA violations?
Civil penalties range from $100 to $50,000 per violation, with annual caps of $1.5 million per violation category. Criminal penalties can include fines up to $250,000 and imprisonment. The HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) enforces HIPAA and publishes enforcement actions publicly.
How does SCF Connect help with HIPAA compliance?
SCF Connect maps the HIPAA Security Rule and Administrative Simplification requirements to the Secure Controls Framework. Select HIPAA and the platform identifies every applicable control, provides maturity assessment capabilities, and generates evidence request lists tailored to your HIPAA obligations. Your HIPAA controls automatically map to related frameworks like NIST CSF, SOC 2, and NIST 800-53.