"The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996
(HIPAA) is best known for protecting the privacy
and security
of
patients’ medical records. It provides certain patient rights over the
access, use, and distribution of personally identifiable health
information, as well as criteria for information disclosures and
security requirements that health care providers, insurance plans
,
and clearinghouses must follow." (Codington-Lacerte, C. 2021)
"Health information technology is protected under the Health
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). HIPAA
was enacted to protect health care coverage for people when they
lost employment or changed jobs and safeguard medical information
and establish security standards for access to electronic health care
transactions, among other provisions. The establishment of HIPAA
had a great effect concerning how and who can access medical
records. It also laid out penalties for violations, but these were rarely
enforced. This led to the creation of federal health care information
privacy and security rules known as the HITECH Act, which modified
some parts of HIPAA and set stricter guidelines for enforcing
standards." (Harmon, 2022)
HIPAA and the HITECH Act work simultaneously to ensure patient
privacy rights, no matter in written or electronical form are protected
at its highest level and ensure that those that violate these laws are
held at the highest penalty.
Reference:
Codington-Lacerte, C. (2021). Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act of 1996. Salem Press Encyclopedia.
Harmon, A. (2022). Health Information Technology for Economic and
Clinical Health Act (HITECH Act). Salem Press Encyclopedia.
