The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is a US law that was created in 1996 that aims to create protections against the disclosure of sensitive patient health information. It also intends to safeguard the privacy of personal medical records and other health data, as well as its safety.
Key Provisions of HIPAA
There are generally two parts to HIPAA:
Health insurance portability: This part helps to protect health insurance coverage for workers who lose their jobs or change jobs.
Administrative Simplification: This section tackles the administrative burden of healthcare through standards for eHealth records and other administrative functions.
HIPAA Privacy Rule
The Privacy Rule is an irreplaceable part of HIPAA that details standards for the safeguarding of patient health information (PHI). This includes:
Notice of Privacy Practices: Providers must provide individuals with a notice that includes certain required statements regarding the provider’s uses and disclosures of health information.
IHR: Patients have the right to access, amend and receive an accounting of disclosures of their health information.
Minimization Principle: A healthcare provider must limit its disclosure of PHI to the minimum necessary to accomplish a purpose.
The Security Standards: Organizations are required to have safeguards—administrative, physical, and technical—in place to protect electronically stored health information.
HIPAA Security Rule
The Security Rule specifies a set of standards for safeguarding electronic health information from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, or destruction. This includes:
Administrative Safeguards – Policies and procedures for security management, workforce security, and information access and security.
Physical safeguards: Physical safeguards for facilities and equipment
Technical Safeguards: These are technical measures that involve protecting electronic health information and include access controls, audit controls and encryption.
Fines and Penalties for Violating HIPAA
Penalties associated with HIPAA violations can be extensive, they include:
Civil Penalties: Fines for noncompliance with the Privacy Rule.
Criminal penalties: for egregious willful neglect, willfully or intentionally misconducting PHI, and/or obtaining PHI under false pretenses (jails time and/or fines)
Conclusion
HIPAA is an essential part of ensuring proper use and disclosure of patient health information. Healthcare providers that understand and comply with HIPAA can protect patient privacy while maintaining public trust.
