HIPAA is an abbreviation for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 , a United States federal law that regulates the transfer and use of medical data in order to protect the security and privacy of personal patient information. In recent years, as the number of cyberattacks and the risks of health data breaches kept increasing, many healthcare providers and insurers have had to become more aware of and compliant with this legislation.HIPAA protects the rights of patients by enforcing the limits and rules within which medical information can be obtained, shared, and accessed. It also requires that all data is handled securely (especially in electronic form) to protect it from prying eyes and malicious use.HIPAA was adopted by the United States Congress in August 1996 and signed into law by former President Bill Clinton. It aims to achieve the following:
- Create obligations for adhering to industry-wide health standards for e-invoicing and other processes involving personal data.
- Provide the possibility of transferring and continuing health insurance coverage to countless US employees and their families when they lose or change jobs.
- Require privacy and protection when working with sensitive personal information about a patient’s health status.
- Establish guidelines to define the responsibilities of entities covered by the law and their business associates. It enforces severe penalties of up to $1.5 million per incident in cases of compliance violations as well as HIPAA privacy and security breaches.
- Fight against abuse, waste, and fraud in the healthcare system when personal information is used within the medical sphere.
HIPAA Is Separated Into Five Title Sections:Title 1: Health Insurance Portability
This title addresses people’s ability to retain their health insurance opportunities. It protects individuals who lose or change jobs, prohibits insurers from setting lifetime coverage limits, and mandates all group health plans to provide coverage to all individuals regardless of pre-existing conditions and diseases.
Title 2: Protection and Confidential Handling of Health Information
This title outlines regulations concerned with privacy requirements for healthcare organizations and suppliers, as well as their business service providers, requiring them to strictly follow procedures that guarantee the security and confidentiality of private health information when it is shared, sent, received, or used.
Title 2 applies to all forms of protected/personal health information (PHI), including verbal communication, physical documents, and electronic forms of communication, such as electronic health records (EHRs) and electronic protected health information (ePHI). It is important to note that, in this case, the only patient information that should be shared is that required for business purposes. The HIPAA Standards for Privacy Rule set the first national standard in the US to safeguard patients’ PHI and private information
Adhering to Title 2 of HIPAA is often called “being HIPAA compliant.” To avoid facing civil financial monetary penalties for HIPAA compliance violations, every healthcare organization, provider, or supplier must adhere to the following requirements:
- Follow a standardized electronic data interchange (EDI) procedure every time an insurance claim is submitted or processed.
- Possess a unique 10-digit national provider identifier number (National Provider Identifier or NPI).
- Ensure that all sensitive patient information, including clinical data, is properly encrypted, handled, and safeguarded at all times to guarantee patient privacy and the security of their health data.
Title 3: Tax-Related Health Provisions
Title 3 is a set of guidelines for a pre-tax medical savings account to determine how much may be saved per person. This enables self-employed professionals and employees covered by employer-sponsored insurance plans to access medical savings accounts. The law also provides for deductions for medical insurance and other tax-related provisions, along with other modifications to the health insurance law.
Title 4: Application and Enforcement of Group Health Plan Requirements
Title 4 adds further changes to the health insurance reforms, specifying eligibility for people with pre-existing conditions and patients requiring continued coverage. It also includes clarification of the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA).
Title 5: Revenue Offset Governing Tax Deductions for Employers
Title 5 of HIPAA encompasses:
- Provisions for company-owned life insurance, such as forbidding company endowments, company-related contracts, and the tax deduction of interest on life insurance loans.
- Repeals the financial institution rule to interest allocation rules.
- Provides for the treatment of people who lost or gave up citizenship in the United States for income tax purposes. It also allows for the expatriation tax to be applied to those who have given up their US citizenship for tax reasons.
FAQs
Brosix and HIPAA Compliance
Where do I go for answers regarding HIPAA protected health information? ›
Frequently asked questions about the HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules can be found on the HIPAA Frequently Asked Questions site. For additional information about health information privacy, please visit the Office for Civil Rights' website.
What is HIPAA compliant messaging? ›
End-to-end encryption
According to HIPAA, all Protected Health Information (PHI) needs to be encrypted at rest. HIPAA compliant messaging tools encrypt all the information that's exchanged in transit. This makes it impossible to access the content of messages if intercepted.
What is the best HIPAA compliant texting app? ›
Top 15 HIPAA-Compliant Messaging Apps: A Quick Comparison
| Alternative | Price Range | Support |
|---|
| TigerConnect | NA* | 4.5/5.0 |
| MessageDesk | $14-$129 per user per month | 5.0/5.0 |
| Textline | $59 – $249 | 5.0/5.0 |
| SimpleTexting | $29 per month for 500 messages | 4.8/5.0 |
11 more rowsAccess controls: Any HIPAA-compliant chat messaging solution must have access controls and secure logins. Password-protected logins for patients are one way to implement this requirement.
Which is the best answer as to who must comply with HIPAA? ›
Who must comply with the HIPAA Privacy Rule? HIPAA applies to health plans, health care clearinghouses, and those health care providers that conduct certain health care transactions electronically (e.g., billing a health plan). These are known as covered entities.
What are the three important rules for HIPAA compliance? ›
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) lays out three rules for protecting patient health information, namely:
- The Privacy Rule.
- The Security Rule.
- The Breach Notification Rule.
According to these basic standards, the primary text messaging (SMS) functionality available on all mobile phones and email communication is not HIPAA-compliant. Reasons for this include: SMS and email lack access controls; patients do not need to enter a password before reading a text message or email.
Can healthcare providers text patients? ›
The Privacy Rule allows physicians to text (or email) patients as long as physicians apply appropriate safeguards when doing so, including: Double-checking the patient's phone number to ensure accuracy before sending. Sending a text to the patient to confirm the phone number before sending a message with ePHI.
Is simple texting HIPAA compliant? ›
SimpleTexting is a basic HIPAA-compliant texting solution that healthcare providers can use to communicate with their patients securely. The platform provides: End-to-end encryption assurance.
Google Chat is HIPAA compliant when it is used as part of a Google Workspace plan that includes the necessary controls to protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of Protected Health Information (PHI) used and disclosed via this communication channel.
Are Iphone messages HIPAA compliant? ›
The fact that Apple's iMessage isn't HIPAA compliant is not the problem. Rather, the provider's choice to use a non-HIPAA-compliant technology is the problem that leaves providers open to HIPAA investigations.
What kind of phone message can be left under HIPAA? ›
Within the realm of HIPAA, what are you allowed to say? And who are you allowed to speak with? The HIPAA Privacy Rule does permit health care providers to communicate via voicemail to their patients. This may be regarding their appointments, prescriptions, or other information about their care.
How do I make texting HIPAA compliant? ›
Document consent from patients
Before you begin communicating with your patients via text, you must first get their formal written consent. This consent must inform them of the nature of data that will be shared and the patients' duty to protect it so that it does not reach the hands of unauthorized individuals.
How to make a chatbot HIPAA compliant? ›
Choose the tools that you are building your healthcare chatbots with care, and make sure that their features are HIPAA compliant. This includes features such as secure data storage, audit trails, and encryption protocols.
Is Zoom texting HIPAA compliant? ›
Zoom provides a secure platform for healthcare communications that meets both HIPAA and SOC-2 compliance.
Who to contact with questions about HIPAA? ›
For questions related to Health Information Privacy or Patient Safety, email OCRPrivacy@hhs.gov.
Who should you go to when you have questions about HIPAA? ›
HIPAA is regulated by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Civil Rights (OCR). HIPAA can also be enforced by State Attorneys General. HIPAA compliance is an ongoing process that requires addressing every facet of this comprehensive law.
What qualifies as protected health information under HIPAA *? ›
The information HIPAA protects is all individually identifiable health information that relates to an individual´s past, present, or future medical condition, treatment for medical conditions, and payment for treatments.
How do you prove you are HIPAA compliant? ›
HIPAA audit logs are one of the primary artifacts used to demonstrate regulatory compliance. Audit logs must be maintained for all systems that store or process ePHI. The logs must be made available to OCR and internal auditors to verify the required security and privacy measures are being implemented.
