Question

1.  In your opinion, why do we need to have laws protecting patients’ privacy?
2.  If you were in a position to change health care confidentiality law, what changes, if any, would you make and why?
3.  Identify one of the standards of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and explain how it applies to your profession.

Answer 1

1. Patients who are ill often seeks help from a health care professionals. They reveal most of their personal information which can be a great secret or private information maintained by them for years and still wants it be confidential even if it is revealed to a third person like a provider or any other healthcare professionals. This is protected by HIPAA .This is done in three ways like maintaining high privacy ,security and from breach .In case of there is no specific law there are high chances for revealing the personal information of the patient to anyone which can lead to emotional trauma to patients. Misusing, loss of data for monetary gains,cyber hacking can be done if there is no proper security .In case if there is no rules for maintaining confidentiality there are chances for using it for gaining money which is termed to be breach of patient documentation. Hence this has to be protected by law to maintain the most sensitive information of the patient.