The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), which was intended to improve access and renewability with respect to employment related group health plans, to health insurance coverage sold in connection with group plans, and to the individual market, by amending the Public Health Service Act. The paper relates that the primary elements in the legislation for most workers are portability and a general improvement in coverage but the Act falls short in addressing these problems. The paper outlines the shortcomings of the Act and provides examples to illustrate them. The paper concludes that, even though main issue in the law is portability, the many other provisions in the Act show how even that one particular change requires a good deal of change in other areas as well.

From the Paper:

"Epstein (2002) notes some of the unintended consequences of HIPAA with reference to medical research. He cites the provisions on privacy and finds a conflict "between the concern for privacy on the one hand, and the ability of medical scientists, physicians, and institutions to continue on with their traditional research activities." Under the new rules, it is assumed that everyone needs to obtain consent for the disclosure or use of any particular medical record for any kind of purpose, and when HIPAA does distinguish among purposes, it does so based on the needs of the individual."

Sample of Sources Used:

• DiSimone, R.L. (1997). Health Insurance Reform Legislation. Social Security Bulletin 60(4), 18.
• Epstein, R.A. (2002). HIPAA on Privacy: Its Unintended and Intended Consequences. The Cato Journal, Volume 22, Issue 1, 13-15.
• Hyman, D.A. (2002). HIPAA and Health Care Fraud: An Empirical Perspective. The Cato Journal, Volume 22, Issue 1, 151-160.
• Lieberman, T. (1997, July-August). You Can't Take It with You. Columbia Journalism Review 36(2), 50.
• Young, J. (2000, October 23). The High Tech Report. Healthcare Review.

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