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Health Information Privacy (HIPAA): What you need to know

The Administrative Simplification provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) require the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish national standards for electronic healthcare transactions and national identifiers for providers, health plans, and employers. It also requires that HHS adopt regulations be adopted to protect the privacy and security of healthcare information. These standards are intended to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the nation's healthcare system by encouraging the widespread use of electronic data interchange in health care.
Coverage Exemption
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Group health plans with fewer than 50 participants and that are administered solely by the employer are exempt from the HIPAA privacy, electronic transaction, and security standards.
The HIPAA Privacy Rule creates national standards to protect individuals' medical records and other personal health information and to give patients more control over their health information. It sets limits on the use and release of health records. It provides for safeguards that covered entities (healthcare providers, health plans, and healthcare clearinghouses) must implement to protect the privacy of health information.
The Privacy Rule provides that, in general, a covered entity may not use or disclose an individual's protected health information (PHI) without specific authorization except for treatment, payment, or healthcare operations. The rule provides individuals with the right to access and amend their PHI. It generally limits the release of PHI to the minimum reasonably needed for the purpose of the disclosure.
The Privacy Rule requires many healthcare plans to ...

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More on this topic:

expand-collapse sectionHIPAA Administrative Simplification
expand-collapse sectionHIPAA Privacy
expand-collapse sectionHIPAA Security
expand-collapse sectionBusiness Associates
expand-collapse sectionElectronic Health Records
expand-collapse sectionDisclosure of Breaches
expand-collapse sectionMiscellaneous HIPAA Requirements
expand-collapse sectionHIPAA Privacy and Security Audit Program

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