The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996
(HIPAA) is a law that is used to protect patient health information.
This law is needed so patient’s information is kept private. When a
patient plan is given to the wrong patient, the other patient now
knows that patient’s medications, date of birth and or diagnosis.
When this happens, both patients can lose the trust in the medical
system. The Health Information Technology for Economic and
Clinical Health (HITECH) Act, helps enforce HIPAA regulations.
HITECH addresses the privacy and security concerns associated with
the electronic transmission of health information as discussed by
OCR. No patient wants their information given to the wrong person.
By having laws in place to protect patient information, healthcare
organizations must follow them to show their integrity and to keep
the confidence of the patients.
References
OCR. (2021, June 28). Hitech Act Enforcement Interim Final Rule.
HHS.gov. Retrieved May 2, 2022, from
https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/special-topics/hitech-
act-enforcement-interim-final-rule/index.html
