Which department enforces criminal violations of the HIPAA Privacy Rule?

The Department of Justice (DOJ) is responsible for enforcing criminal violations of the HIPAA Privacy Rule. This enforcement includes prosecuting cases where there is willful neglect or intentional wrongdoing regarding the privacy of health information. Criminal penalties can arise from unauthorized access and disclosure of protected health information (PHI), among other violations.

The roles of the other departments differ in nature: the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) primarily oversees the administrative enforcement of HIPAA's civil provisions, while the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) within HHS handles compliance and investigations related to privacy violations but does not pursue criminal charges. Meanwhile, the Office of Inspector General mainly focuses on preventing fraud and abuse in healthcare programs rather than directly enforcing the HIPAA Privacy Rule. Therefore, the DOJ is the correct entity for criminal enforcement related to HIPAA violations, highlighting its role in maintaining the integrity of healthcare privacy laws.