What are the requirements of HIPAA?
HIPAA requires safeguards to improve the confidentiality of patient information. It includes a Privacy Rule and a Security Rule, both of which require healthcare organizations to increase the security of their patient-related data. The HIPAA Privacy Rule requires health plan administrators, healthcare clearinghouses, and healthcare providers to protect and secure any individually-identifiable health-related information. The Privacy Rule broadly covers all types of patient health information including written, oral, and electronic. The HIPAA Security Rule ensures the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of electronic protected health information (ePHI). It provides a uniform level of protection of all health information that (a) is housed or transmitted electronically, and that (b) pertains to an individual. The Security Rule specifies certain safeguards that are “required” (i.e., must be implemented) and others that are “addressable” (i.e., do not have to be implemented if the
