What you need to know about: HIPAA
What the heck is HIPAA? Are you sure you typed that right? Isn't it HIPPA? Well, if you're a patient seeking counseling services, you have a right to understand your right to privacy, when receiving health care services. So let's give you some basic information on HIPAA and what it means to you, the patient or client.
HIPAA...
- stands for Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
- was created in 1996
- protects clients' or patients' privacy in receiving medical and mental healthcare services
- creates a federal right granting patients access to their health information with few exceptions
- does not affect established confidentiality expectations for health care providers (e.g., except in some cases when a patient poses a risk to themselves or others)
- grants patients the ability to define who has access to their records with few exceptions
- gives healthcare providers some flexibility to communicate with patients' loved ones, whether time-sensitive or not
- could be improved upon to better protect clients, in regards to changing technology and distinguishing between types of health information (physical vs. mental)
Well, now you're an expert on HIPAA. There is always more to know, and the Office for Civil Rights has published some great resources to help you as patients understand just why it matters and how it might affect you.
More information on...
Your Health Information Privacy Rights
Privacy, Security, and Electronic Health Record Rights
Sharing Health Information with Family Members and Friends
HHS.gov/HIPAA