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Privacy and confidentiality of health information had been protected by makeshift federal
and state legislation until the 1970s when The Privacy Act of 1974 was established and
made into law.
The Privacy Act of 1974, gave people control over the information that was collected about
them by government agencies. The regulation gave people the right to find out what
information has been collected about them, to see and have a copy of that information, to
correct and amend the information and have control as to what information can be
disclosed to other parties.
More recent legislation is the Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health
Information, known as HIPAA was enacted in 1996. HIPAA establishes regulations for the
security of health information that are kept by health plans, clearinghouses, which store
health information and health care providers that have interoperability to transmit
information electronically. With the enactment of HIPAA, organizations must establish
policies and put into place procedures to stay in compliance with legislation.
Overview
Safeguarding the privacy, security, and confidentiality of personal health
information has been a important principle for the health information
management (HIM) profession during their 80 year history. Their challenge of
maintaining the privacy and security of patient information today, continues to
become more difficult as information becomes increasingly interchangeable in
electronic systems and has legislation and regulations change. This task
requires more responsibility due to the changing regulatory environment. HIM
professionals will ensure they use their knowledge to protect health
information and guarantee the right information is presented to the right
people at the right time.
Sources
Hughes, Gwen (2002 Nov) AHIMA Practice Brief Laws and Regulations
Governing the Disclosure of Health Information
Retrieve from:
http://library.ahima.org/xpedio/groups/public/documents/ahima/bok1_016464.hc
sp?dDocName=bok1_016464