There were many individuals who use to lose their medical cover when they changed or quit jobs. This was causing a lot of hardship to them and their families. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) that were passed as a federal law in 1996 helped in the continuation of medical cover to individuals and their families even during the transition period of changing jobs. Apart from this HIPAA also aims to protect the confidential information of patients from misuse and abuse.

There are many people who are able to access the protected information of patients and if suitable safeguards are not in place then it can lead to misuse or abuse of the information for commercial purposes. There are various components of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act that covered entities and their employees should be aware of and this will help in easy compliance.

5 Basic Components of HIPAA

1. Title I is the first component of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act and it deals with health care access, portability of medical cover of employees and protection of insurance cover for individuals who have pre-existing illness.

2. Title II which is the second component of HIPAA deals with fraud, abuse and helps in simplifying the administration of the Act.

3. Title III is the third component of HIPAA and it deals with how employers handle medical savings accounts and other insurance related issues.

4. Title IV is the forth component of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act and it deals with the group health plan requirements that enable individuals to carry their previous medical cover to their current job.

5. Title V is the fifth component of HIPAA and it deals with revenue offsets. Apart from this tax deductions are also included in this component.

There are various physical, administrative and technical safeguards that need to be put into place by the covered entities specified by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. This will ensure that only employees who are authorized by their organizations will be able to access these medical records and any unauthorized individual will not be able to access it.

When the medical reports of patients are transmitted electronically, it is important that they are password protected and encrypted to ensure that they are not misused by anyone. If the confidential information of patients is stored in the physical form there should again be enough safeguards in place to protect them.

The place where all the medical information of patients is stored should be restricted to individuals who will not be accessing these records for any purpose. If any employee comes across any violation of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, it is advisable that they report it to the proper authorities who will be able to take effective remedial steps. If any violation is reported it will need to be rectified within a period of thirty days. This period can also be extended on the request of the covered entities. There are many stringent penalties for non compliance of HIPAA.

For more information, please visit our HIPAA Certificate website.

For more information, please visit our HIPAA Certificate website http://www.hipaaexams.com/hipaa-certificate.html

Author Bio: For more information, please visit our HIPAA Certificate website.

Category: Medical Business
Keywords: medical cover ,Health Insurance ,HIPAA,HIPAA Protects