The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 ensures healthcare organizations in the United States will be responsible for the secure electronic transmission of patient information and the secure storage and disposal of that information.
The HIPAA legislation has four primary objectives:
Assure health insurance portability by eliminating job-lock due to pre-existing medical conditions
Reduce healthcare fraud and abuse
Enforce standards for health information
Guarantee security and privacy of health information
HIPAA Penalties HIPAA Noncompliance can have devastating consequences. It not only opens you up to
severe fines and penalties, but also to litigation and negative publicity. Non-compliance can result in the following:
Civil fines of up to $25,000 a year
Criminal penalties reaching $250,000 and up to 10 years in prison (Information Management Journal 2003)