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HIPAA: A Brief Overview

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HIPAA: A BRIEF OVERVIEW

James Milan Department of Social Sciences and Human Services, Borough of Manhattan Community College Human Services 201: Introduction to Human Services and Social Work Professor Dennis McDougale April 27, 2020

When we go to see a medical professional for an initial visit, ask for medical records to be transmitted or sign up for health insurance we are usually presented with a stack forms to fill out. There is a form in that stack that speaks about health records, patient's information, and various other items. This is what we have come to know as a HIPAA or mistakenly HIPPA form. Patients sometimes have a basic understanding of this form which says the medical practitioner may not release personal health / medical information without the patient's consent. Congress passed the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 "to provide consumers with greater access to health care insurance, to protect the privacy of health care data, and to promote more standardization and efficiency in the health care industry"(OHSU). The most important parts of HIPAA to clients are the privacy and security rules. The Privacy Rule and Security rule are officially "Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information" and "Security Standards for the Protection of Electronic Protected Health Information". The privacy rule sets the standards of how a client's Personal Health Information/ medical records are shared and who it is shared with, while the security rule requires what are known as covered entities to put in safeguards to protect electronic personal health information. Before HIPAA there was nothing in place to ensure the privacy or security of

HIPAA: A Brief Overview

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personal health information. With technologies advancing, officials recognized the need to put these requirements in place. While Social Workers are considered a covered entity under HIPAA, Social workers must also follow the National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics which requires that clients' right to privacy be respected. The privacy and confidentiality provided by HIPAA and NASW code of ethics allow for a trusting and open relationship to develop between a client and their social worker....