overview
The Health Insurance Portability
and Accountability Act of 1996 is an important law,
passed by Congress, which is expected to have a major
impact on every healthcare organization in the country.
Title II of HIPAA, the Administrative
Simplification Compliance Act, is a major component
of the HIPAA legislation. The Act instructs the Department
of Health & Human Services to adopt standards
for transactions that are conducted electronically
between healthcare providers and insurers, and between
insurers.
The four components of Administrative
Simplification are:
• Electronic Transactions
• Privacy Standards
• Code Sets & Unique Identifiers
• Security Standards & Electronic Signature
The goal of these provisions is to
simplify the administrative burden placed on healthcare
providers. Addition HIPAA Policy goals include:
• Protect the privacy of the patient by protecting
their data
• Focus healthcare providers with the importance of
security and privacy.
• Create a common set of standards for securing such
data, whether on paper or electronically
• Improve efficiencies within the healthcare industry
• Require efficiencies and security in the transfer
of patient information.
Specifically, the Department of Health and Human Services
states in the Preamble to the Privacy Standards that
the regulations are being instituted to:
1- Protect and enhance the rights of consumers
2 - Improve the quality of the healthcare system and
restoring trust back in this system.
3- Improve the efficiency and effectiveness of healthcare
delivery
more
