HIPAA Compliance

Course overview

This course examines the fundamental elements of HIPAA, the individual rights protected by HIPAA, and the obligations of healthcare professionals to adhere to its regulations. This module will provide an overview of the essential elements of HIPAA, the personal rights guaranteed under HIPAA, and the compliance responsibilities healthcare providers must adhere to. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 is a federal law applicable across all 50 states and U.S. territories. It mandates adherence to national regulatory standards aimed at safeguarding the privacy and security of "individually identifiable health information." This information, as defined by the Privacy Rule, is referred to as "protected health information" or PHI. HIPAA grants patients the rights to control their health information and safeguards sensitive and individually identifiable PHI from unauthorized disclosure. The regulation of HIPAA compliance falls under the purview of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and is enforced by the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR). Violations may result in civil monetary penalties, and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is responsible for enforcing criminal penalties (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services [CMS], 2021a; HHS, 2021b).