Does HIPAA Apply to Mental Health Professionals?
Yes. The privacy rule of HIPAA will ultimately apply to every healthcare provider and all health information, whether paper or electronic. If a provider, or someone on their behalf, completes even one HIPAA covered transaction (billing, benefits query, etc.) then the provider is a “covered entity” and must comply. There is an exemption in another portion of HIPAA (the Transaction and Code set) that allowed for a compliance extension until October, 2003. It did not apply to the privacy rule. What If I Don’t Use Computers? The regulations speak to all protected health information, not just things stored on computers. Whether you file insurance claims or not, HIPAA will become a national standard of privacy and security for medical records. The American Psychological Association recommends that all clinical psychologists become HIPAA compliant. HHS has consistently expanded the rules For example, if you write a client related letter on a computer, then the information has been created and
