The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was established in 1996 as a means of protecting the sensitive health information of patients when they switch jobs. It wasn’t until 2003 that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) introduced the Privacy Rule to broaden coverage to any organization maintaining or accessing protected health information (PHI).
With that in mind, healthcare organizations, decision makers, and more need to ensure that that they are HIPAA compliant based on current regulations. These current regulations focus on a trio of major categories: administrative, physical, and technical safeguards.
Today’s modern thieves and hackers can use sophisticated tactics to steal information. Hence, it is necessary to move beyond simply checking up on compliance at a certain point. It is now practically required to implement persistent monitoring so customers and patients are always protected. This monitoring involves evaluating risks, removing or adding employee access as required, changing passwords every so often, or ensuring that your software has the latest security updates.
Chances are that HIPAA rules and regulations will only continue to become more stringent as the years go by. Being proactive now will make it easier to adapt to future changes.
This update is by Medical Accounts Systems, a full-service healthcare revenue cycle management company providing a number of services including insurance follow up and managed care disputes, physician reimbursement, extended business office services, and more. For additional information on our services or for any questions you may have on topics such as health insurance collections, please call 877-759-6315.