Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act

Protecting the privacy of their patients should be of paramount concern to healthcare providers, and Medical Accounts Systems is equipped to provide the best available services to its clients without compromising the integrity of medical information.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was enacted by Congress in 1996. According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Title I of HIPAA protects health insurance coverage for workers who change or lose their jobs, and their families when this change occurs. Title II of HIPAA, known as the Administrative Simplification (AS) provisions, requires the establishment of national standards for electronic healthcare transactions and national identifiers for providers, health insurance plans and employers. The AS provisions also address the security and privacy of health data. The standards are meant to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the nation's healthcare system by encouraging the widespread use of electronic data interchange in the US healthcare system.

The practical effect of HIPAA is to place significant limitations and safeguards to ensure the protection of patient medical information. Because MAS is owned and managed by experienced healthcare attorneys, not only are the implications of HIPAA of significant importance, the training in HIPAA related issues becomes an ongoing concern for all MAS staff.

Before receiving Protected Health Information (PHI) from a new client, Medical Accounts Systems will require the client to enter into a Business Associate Agreement. Click here to download a form agreement.