The rapid integration of Electronic Health Records necessitates the need to secure and protect patient health information. All patients are entitled to privacy and confidentiality unless they offer consent disclosure. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) privacy rule offers standards about access, privacy, and disclosure of data.
The History of the Regulation
The HIPAA was signed on 21, August 1996 to enhance the accountability and portability of health insurance coverage for workers between jobs. The Department of Health and Human Services later developed the HIPAA privacy rule on 14, April 2003. The rule described Protected Health Information (PHI) to be any data concerning payment for healthcare, healthcare provision, or health status under the custody of covered entities that can relate to a person (Hebda, Hunter, & Czar, 2019). The rule focused on creating confidentiality structures within and beyond health care organizations by establishing standards to safeguard medical records and personal health data. It applies to healthcare clearinghouses, health plans, and healthcare providers who engage in health care transactions digitally.
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The objective of the rule is to set sufficient protections to safeguard the privacy of personal health data besides setting restrictions and conditions about the disclosure and use of such data without patient permission. The rule provides instructions regarding how entities can disclose PHI in which entities have to seek permission from patients before using their private data for research, fundraising, or marketing (Hebda et al., 2019). The rule also gives patients the right not to disclose information regarding their healthcare to insurance organizations when they use private funding to pay for their treatment. Patients are also allowed to scrutinize and acquire a copy of their health records, as well as request amendments.
The Effect of the Regulation on the Behaviors and Actions of Nurses
Nurses are obliged to protect the privacy of patients and they are required to keep PHI confidential. HIPAA Privacy Rule affects daily nursing practices in several ways. For instance, the rule mandates that nurses give patients clear written details about the allowed disclosures and uses of their PHI. Nurses must also notify patients of any new patient rights under federal laws (Hebda et al., 2019). Secondly, nurses must get patient consent by asking patients to acknowledge notices of the privacy policies of healthcare providers, even though they can still be treated if they fail to do so. While nurses can obtain patient informed consent about different medical procedures, they are not allowed to transmit confidential data based on this consent (Finkelman, 2019). For instance, nurses do not need prior patient consent to disclose confidential data when e-mailing or faxing patient data to the primary care provider. Besides, nurses may also not seek patient consent before disclosing PHI if seeking consent delays emergency care and endanger patients. The data must, nevertheless, be relevant to the involvement of the nurse with the care of the patient and the nurse must seek consent as soon as possible. Thirdly, nurse sometimes must seek patient authorization, not consent. Authorization allows nurses to disclose only specific PHI for specific objectives (Finkelman, 2019). The authorization, however, expires within a specific date. Authorization can be used to disclose data about reimbursement and non-clinical matters such as calling the workplace to verify insurance coverage. Treatment occurs even if the patient does not give authorization.
The effect of the Regulation on the Delivery of Health Care
HIPAA Privacy Rule introduced several key benefits for the delivery of health care to assist in the transition from paper documentation to digital documentation of health data. The rule contributed to the streamlining of administrative health care roles, enhanced efficiency in health care delivery, and ensured secured sharing of PHI (Brixey et al., 2015). The standards for documenting health information and digital transactions ensure that health care practitioners have identical data. Additionally, since all covered entities use the same national standards, entities can easily transfer digital health data between health plans, health care providers, and other entities (Brixey et al., 2015). Additionally, health care delivery improves because mistakes can be corrected as the rule encourages patients to actively participate in their health care by obtaining copies of their health data (Potter et al., 2016). Efficiency in health care delivery improves because patients with copies of health data and who seek treatment from other entities will not need to undergo specific tests or provide their entire health history.
References
Brixey, J. J., Brixey, J. E., Saba, V., & Mccormick, K. (2015). Essentials of Nursing Informatics Study Guide / . Mcgraw-Hill Education.
Finkelman, A. W. (2019). Professional nursing concepts : competencies for quality leadership . Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Hebda, T., Hunter, K. M., & Czar, P. (2019). Handbook of informatics for nurses and healthcare professionals . Pearson.
Potter, P. A., Perry, A. G., Stockert, P., & Hall, A. (2016). Fundamentals of Nursing - E-Book . Mosby.
