HIPAA Compliance Unfortunately, the World We Live Essay

HIPAA Compliance

Unfortunately, the world we live in is not always trustworthy. There are those even in the most sensitive positions, like healthcare providers, who are more than willing to exploit patient information for their own selfish gains. This is why the federal government has stepped in to ensure greater patient protection with the HIPAA.

The HIPAA is a piece of legislation that aims to further provide protection for patients in a healthcare setting. An overview of HIPAA privacy rules clearly shows clear guidelines that protect the privacy of patients by limiting the access to healthcare records and health related information that might be sensitive if leaked to any third party. These privacy restrictions are part of the Heath Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPPA) Privacy and Security Rules. According to the research, HIPPA "protects the privacy of individually identifiable health information" (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 2012).It helps patients rest assured knowing that their medical information is safe from prying eyes. The legislation helps empower patients with the backing of the federal government to ensure that their healthcare providers are acting accordingly and respecting their sensitive medical information. As such, HIPAA "provides federal protections for personal health information held by covered entities and gives patients an array of rights with respect to that information" (U.S. Department of Health

It is integral that all healthcare providers ensure responsibility is being upheld in regards to the elements of the legislation. As part of this compliance, it is necessary to put measures into place to oversee organizational goals and obligations. There will need to be members of the organization's privacy and security teams on the steering committee. It would also benefit the organization to have someone from the Information Systems….....