| administrative
simplification (HIPAA)
Formally, the name
of Title II, Subtitle F of the Health
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA),
which states:
It is the purpose
of this subtitle to improve the Medicare program under title
XVIII of the Social Security Act, the Medicaid program under
title XIX of such Act, and the efficiency and effectiveness
of the health care system, by encouraging the development
of a health information system through the establishment
of standards and requirements for the electronic transmission
of certain health information.
Sections of this
subtitle give the Secretary of the Department of Health and
Human Services (DHHS) the authority to mandate standardized
electronic data interchange (EDI) in
order to reduce the administrative costs associated with healthcare
operations.
Specifically, DHHS
is authorized to require:
- privacy
and security standards
for entities that generate or use health information.
Although the legislative
text seems to put efficiency first, DHHS has itemized the
relative priorities of administrative simplification differently
in the preamble to its final privacy rules (28 December 2000):
- to protect and
enhance the rights of consumers by providing them access
to their health information and controlling the inappropriate
use of that information;
- to improve the
quality of health care in the U.S. by restoring trust in
the health care system among consumers, health care professionals,
and the multitude of organizations and individuals committed
to the delivery of care; and
- to improve the
efficiency and effectiveness of health care delivery by
creating a national framework for health privacy protection
that builds on efforts by states, health systems, and individual
organizations and individuals.
"In enacting
HIPAA," the preamble continues, "Congress recognized
the fact that administrative simplification cannot succeed
if we do not also protect the privacy and confidentiality
of personal health information. The provision of high-quality
health care requires the exchange of personal, often-sensitive
information between an individual and a skilled practitioner.
Vital to that interaction is the patient's ability to trust
that the information shared will be protected and kept confidential."
See also:
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