HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996)



 In 1996, the Clinton administration signed into law the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which aims to modernize privacy laws, increase penalties for breeches of privacy, and standardize how health care practitioners protect patients' medical records. The law explicitly allows patients to tell doctors and hospitals not to release their names to certain people, including family members, the media, and clergy.
 "The Administrative Simplication provisions of HIPAA require the Department of Health and Human Services to establish national standards for electronic health care transactions and national identifiers for providers, health plans, and employers. It also addresses the security and privacy of health data. It was passed into law because it is believed these standards will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the nation's health care system by encouraging the widespread use of electronic data interchange in health care." Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
 Click here to view the slide show The HIPAA Privacy Rule: Implications for Medical Research.
 Click here to access our Notice Regarding Privacy of Personal Health Information.
 Click here for the Notice of Privacy Practices signature form.
 Click here to take the HIPAA Test.