Health Insurance and Accountability Act

US Congress created the Hipaa bill in 1996 because of public concern of how their private information was being used. It is the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, which Congress created to protect confidentiality, privacy and security of patient information. It was also for health care documents to be passed electronically. Hipaa is a privacy rule, which gives patients control over their health information. Patients have to give permission any healthcare provider can disclose any information placed in the individual’s medical records. It helps limit protected health information (PHI) to minimize the chance of inappropriate disclosure. It establishes national-level standards that healthcare providers must comply with and strictly investigates compliance related issues while holding violators to civil or criminal penalties if they violate the privacy of a person’s PHI. Hipaa also has boundaries for using and disclosing health records by covered entities; a healthcare provider, health plan, and healthcare clearinghouse. It also supports the cause of disclosing PHI without a person’s consent for individual healthcare needs, public benefit and national interests. The portability part of Hipaa guarantees patients health insurance to employees after losing a job, making sure health insurance providers can’t discriminate against people because of health status or pre-existing condition, and keeps their files safe while being sent electronically. The Privacy

All healthcare providers, health organizations, and government health plans that use, store, maintain, or transmit patient health care information are required to comply with the privacy regulations of the HIPAA

HIPAA, short for The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act is a privacy act that helps protect your health information. It was created to assure that individuals’ health information is protected safely and securely by allowing the right to protect the release of personal information to unauthorized individuals or organizations. It is important to know what your rights are, know when they have been violated and what you can do, know what the civil and criminal penalties for disclosure are, and know why HIPAA is important. ADD MORE

HIPPA is the law to protect health information communicated in any manner. It states the privacy and security regulations on the rights and standards of the patient. It also defined the penalties for those who fail to protect the individual’s identifiable health information. The information on patient’s name, diagnosis, important activities for the shift and room number are all included in the HIPPA privacy rule. HIPPA privacy rule part § 162.1002 Medical data code sets. (i) Prevention. (ii) Diagnosis. (iii) Treatment. (iv)

The forms restrict access to patient’s information by seeking the patient’s permission to disclose such information in certain circumstances only. The forms thus must be available in the HIPAA compliance manual. The HIPAA forms are crucial in implementing access controls to keep track of the persons who access the patient’s information. The new patient forms include patient history forms, patient registration form, advanced directive to physician forms, authorization for use and disclosure of protected health information, HIPAA Contact Disclosure, HIPAA notice of privacy practices (Acknowledgement), and well-being assessment form.

Personal health information includes a patient’s name, address, birthdate and social security number. It also includes a person’s health or mental status whether it is in the past, present or future. HIPAA gives people the right to have access to their medical records. It also states that people have the right to either give consent or deny consent of their information being shared or released. All health care facilities, insurance companies, pharmacies, vision, and dental offices must adhere to the HIPAA guidelines. Though patients have a right to their information being kept confidential, their information may be shared for necessity in regards to treatment, billing, to protect the public health, and if the law requires disclosure. Penalties are set in place for violations of the HIPAA laws ("HIPAA summary,"

The right to receive a notice of privacy practices - Patients have the right to receive a notice explaining how a provider or health plan uses and discloses their health information.

The answer is no. If a patient’s rights are violated under Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”), the patient does not have a specific private right of action. This means that a patient cannot use a HIPAA violation as a direct cause of action in a privacy lawsuit. The law creates a right to privacy only, not a right to sue. However, if a HIPAA violations occurs, the violation can serve as a breach of duty, negligence or professional malpractice by the pharmacist and such cases can be brought under state laws.

HIPAA law is for the protection of patient’s private health information. All covered entities must abide by HIPAA regulations in regards to all protect health information. HIPAA out line privacy and security rules in regards to the use and disclosure of all health information. This helps prevent abuse of protected information and allows patients to understand a covered entities responsibility to protect the information that is within the medical record. HIPAA was enacted in 1996 and has been followed by all covered entities since.

“Prior to 1996, there was no federal law regulating the privacy of health information. Even though many other countries at the time regulated personal privacy broadly and uniformly, the United States’ privacy regulation

What does the HIPAA Privacy Rule require the average provider or health plan to do? It is a requirement under the HIPAA Privacy Rule that each patient knows their privacy rights and how their medical information can be used. The Rule also includes that each facility has adequate training for its employees. The securing of patient records containing identifiable information so that only authorized personnel can access them

Any patient that is seen by a physician within the United States is to be protected by the “Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act” or HIPAA, which was passed into law in 1996 (Jani, 2009). All health care facilities dealing with any protected health information (PHI) are to ensure that all physical/electronic processes are safeguarded from any third party entity or unauthorized personnel according to HIPAA. All health care data to include any medical insurance

Release or not to release is the question in today’s healthcare? Being a patient, and going to a doctor’s appointment has really changed versus how it was years ago. Most of us as patients know that we have a right to our own health information, but how is this beneficial to us as patients and healthcare providers? As healthcare is increasingly becoming complex what are ways to enforce these policies and rules? HIPAA rules and standards will need to be the same in each state so there is interoperability the proper way, but will we be able to really accomplish this? This paper will discuss these aspects and ways to overcome these obstacles that are occurring.

“The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 made it illegal to gain access to personal medical information for any reasons other than health care delivery, operations, and reimbursements” (Shi & Singh, 2008, p. 166). “HIPAA legislation mandated strict controls on the transfer of personally identifiable health data between two entities, provisions for disclosure of protected information, and criminal penalties for violation” (Clayton 2001). “HIPAA also has privacy requirements that govern disclosure of patient protected health information (PHI) placed in the medical record by physicians, nurses, and other health care providers” (Buck, 2011). Always remember conversations about a patient’s health care or treatment is a violation of HIPAA. “All PHI is included in the privacy requirements for example: the patient’s past, present or future physical or mental health or condition; the provision of health care to the individual, or the past, present, or future payment for the provision of health care to the individual, and that identifies the individual or for which there is a reasonable basis to believe it can be used to identify the individual” (Buck, 2011). Other identifiable health information would be the patient’s name, address, birth date and Social Security Number (Keomouangchanh, 2011). (Word count 197)

3.) Under HIPAA, covered entities (healthcare providers, health plans and healthcare clearinghouse) must comply with the privacy rules. A covered entity may develop its own privacy rules that would accommodate its own needs of protected health information (PHI) management but it most comply with the HIPAA guidelines. It is the responsibility of the entity to put in place a privacy official to oversee the policies, procedures and be on hand and available to be contacted in reference to the privacy rule. A patient should be given a privacy notice act at his/her health facility stating how their (PHI) is being used and to whom it will be shared. The covered entity should include in the notice their duty to assure the patients privacy as well as how and whom to contact if there is a complaint or they feel that their rights have been violated. As of 2009 the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) handles complaints that are made on privacy policies, procedure and practices of HIPAA covered entities.