The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) became law in 1996. HIPAA was designed to protect the privacy of personal health care information, simplify documentation and record keeping, and reduce costs. In the United States, every healthcare worker must receive HIPAA training. When patients sign in at doctors’ office, hospital or clinic they will be required to sign a HIPAA statement that states that the patient is aware of the HIPAA law and that their records will not be released for public consumption.

– HIPAA is a significant information management issue. In order to comply with the law, HIPAA training must be complied with for all healthcare workers. Every covered entity must comply with the regulations provided by the Federal Government healthcare laws. Healthcare providers who transmit healthcare records in electronic form, clearinghouse (healthcare billing companies) and insurance companies must be aware of HIPAA laws and their personnel must be trained. All healthcare agencies involved in diagnostic and preventative care, maintenance or pain management, counseling or provide prescriptions or drugs or even medical equipment must be trained.

– There are reputable agencies who will train your employees. However just like everything else, there are dishonest companies who will offer to train your employees, charge a fee, and actually not do complete training. No individual agency is endorsed by the United States Department of Health and Human Services for training purposes, but training materials are available free of charge either by mail or via the website.

– It is best to have a HIPAA training officer on staff to train employees as they are hired, and patients as they register for treatment. Be aware that a patient who is able to make their own healthcare decisions can decide whether or not to disclose their medical records to a family member. If a patient does not have the capacity to make this decision, a healthcare provider may discuss medical needs with someone else if they choose. HIPAA does not require documentation or consent forms for this type of information sharing, but healthcare providers must be very careful in disclosing any type of healthcare information.

– Do let your patients know they can review their own medical files within 30 days of requesting their own files, and patients do have the right to correct mistakes in their files. All healthcare professionals must inform patients when their files need to be shared with other healthcare professionals, a spouse or parent (if the patient is under 18). Outside sources such as banks, insurance companies, credit agencies and other businesses cannot examine medical files and these files cannot be used for marketing purposes. All conversations between patient and physician are confidential. Sensitive patient information cannot be transmitted in a voice mail or email message. Information must be given directly to the patient.

– Medical information is private and HIPAA is designed to protect that privacy. There are strict penalties to healthcare providers if they do not have a patient sign a statement letting the patient know their HIPAA rights, and these penalties can be very high if a healthcare provider violates HIPAA rules.

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Category: Medical Business
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