Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)

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The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) sets national minimum privacy requirements for personal health information. It protects the security and privacy of health data. HIPAA also encourages electronic data interchange among different electronic medical record systems.

History

In 1996 August 21, the United States Congress enacted the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). It is also known as the Kennedy-Kassebaum Act.

Purpose of HIPAA

The purpose of HIPAA is to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and security of the national health system. For efficiency, paper work is reduced for healthcare providers due to an electronic system. This digital paper trail makes fraud prosecution easier, and will reduce overall fraud and abuse. For effectiveness, HIPAA increases portability. This means an employee is guaranteed health insurance coverage, even when he changes jobs. For security, HIPAA calls for increased security for computer based technologies. This will ensure the privacy and security of patient health information and protect patient rights. HIPAA coveres accountability by protecting health data integrity, confidentiality and availability.