HITRUST Certification & Compliance
Provides organizations with a roadmap to manage risk and streamline regulatory compliance.
Understanding HITRUST certification & compliance
The Health Information Trust Alliance (HITRUST), in collaboration with data protection professionals, developed the well-known Common Security Framework (CSF). HITRUST CSF is a certifiable framework designed to provide all organizations, particularly those in healthcare, with a comprehensive roadmap to manage risk and streamline compliance with leading industry or regulatory standards, such as HIPAA.
The certification integrates and leverages widely recognized security and privacy standards such as ISO, GDPR, and HIPAA to create an overarching framework that can support organizations’ information security programs.
At GraVoc, we help organizations navigate the complexities of HITRUST compliance by providing hands-on guidance and tailored readiness assessments. Through our partnership with an authorized external assessor, we ensure that your organization is fully prepared for certification.
HITRUST vs HIPAA: what’s the difference?
HIPAA is a U.S. federal law that was designed to ensure the privacy and security of protected health information (PHI). HIPAA rules apply to healthcare providers, health plan providers, healthcare clearinghouses, and relevant business associates that handle PHI.
While HIPAA is a law, HITRUST CSF is a security certification that organizations can use to demonstrate compliance with HIPAA and other information security standards. HITRUST standardizes and builds on HIPAA regulations, providing organizations with a streamlined approach to implementing relevant HIPAA security and privacy controls.
Who needs HITRUST?
The HITRUST CSF was initially developed for the healthcare industry, but in recent years, it has expanded beyond this sector. The framework’s risk and compliance-based foundation allows for tailored use by any organization looking to improve their security posture.
In any case, the HITRUST CSF remains a popular and reliable framework to prove HIPAA compliance. Healthcare organizations that are federally mandated to adhere to HIPAA rules can leverage the HITRUST CSF certification to achieve compliance and meet regulatory requirements.
What are HITRUST compliance requirements?
The HITRUST CSF includes 14 control categories as seen below. The level of control implementation depends on an organization’s risk profile. Each control implementation is evaluated against five HITRUST maturity levels – policy, procedures, implemented, measured, and managed.
Information security management program
Access control
Physical and environmental security
Asset management
Risk management
Business continuity management
Security policy
Privacy practices
Human resources security
Communications and operations management
Organization of information security
Information systems acquisition, development, and maintenance
Compliance
Information security incident management
HITRUST assessment & certification
HITRUST provides organizations with two assessment certification options – the HITRUST Implemented, 1-Year (i1) Validated Assessment and the HITRUST Risk-Based, 2-Year (r2) Validated Assessment.
Organizations must work with an Authorized HITRUST External Assessor to prepare their i1 or r2 assessments. The assessments are then audited, and certifications are issued, by the HITRUST Assurance Team.
HITRUST Implemented, 1-Year (i1) Validated Assessment
The i1 is a new, less extensive, more affordable version of the r2 assessment for situations with moderate risk. This assessment only tests controls against the ‘implemented’ maturity level.
HITRUST Risk-Based, 2-Year (r2) Validated Assessment
The r2, formerly called the HITRUST CSF Validated Assessment, is a more extensive evaluation that offers a high level of assurance for situations that involve greater risk exposure. This test checks controls against all five maturity levels.
Benefits of HITRUST CSF compliance
‘Assess once, report many’ approach
HITRUST CSF is a scalable, extensive, and evolving security framework. Since the framework draws from several standards and regulations, organizations can broaden the scope of their HITRUST CSF audit to evaluate and report against multiple frameworks. The HITRUST ‘assess once, report many’ consolidated approach can help your business streamline compliance to save time and resources.
Secure a competitive edge and customer confidence
Aligning your security infrastructure with a comprehensive and leading security framework like the HITRUST CSF can help your business prove its data protection capabilities to stand out from the competition and inspire customer confidence.
Streamline HIPAA compliance
HITRUST CSF provides healthcare organizations with a reliable and simplified roadmap to navigate the often vague HIPAA requirements. Using the CSF framework, you can follow a streamlined approach to assess risk, implement the necessary controls, and achieve HIPAA compliance.
Working with GraVoc to achieve HITRUST compliance
GraVoc’s information security team has the knowledge and expertise to help you achieve HITRUST CSF compliance and certification. Our team also partners with an external HITRUST assessor to ensure your certification process runs smoothly from start to finish. Our certification gap analysis & readiness process for HITRUST CSF has three phases:
Review
Interview key personnel and process owners, review in-scope security systems, and evaluate existing IT and security-related policies against HITRUST controls to determine compliance.
Analysis
Review the information gathered during the review process to identify gaps in compliance with HITRUST CSF standards. Our team can also help design, create, document, and implement policies and procedures.
Reporting
Prepare and deliver a detailed summary report outlining areas of non-conformance with HITRUST CSF, control weaknesses, and recommendations for remedial action.
10+
Information Security Certificates
Certified Experts
At GraVoc, one of our core values is Adapt. We embrace this by continually advancing our knowledge and staying ahead of emerging technologies, threats, and solutions through ongoing education and certification. With over 40 certificates spanning security and technology, our proven expertise helps strengthen and protect your organization.
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