HIPAA Tip: HIPAA Definitions
Essential HIPAA Terminology for Healthcare Compliance
Welcome to this week’s HIPAA Tip Tuesday! Understanding HIPAA terminology is fundamental to compliance. Dawn Meglino provides clear definitions of the most important HIPAA terms every healthcare worker should know—from PHI and ePHI to breaches and patient rights.
- PHI/ePHI: Protected Health Information in any form or electronic form
- Minimum Necessary: Limit PHI access to only what’s needed for the job
- Breach: Unauthorized disclosure posing significant risk of harm
- Covered Entities: Healthcare organizations responsible for HIPAA compliance
- Patient Rights: Right to information, informed consent, and privacy
Key HIPAA Definitions
Parties and Organizations Responsible for HIPAA
All healthcare organizations – (Covered Entities, their Business Associates, etc.,) – are responsible for complying with the HIPAA Rules. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) oversees HIPAA enforcement as well as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Governance
HIPAA governance refers to the framework of policies, procedures, and controls that organizations implement to manage and protect Protected Health Information (PHI).
Patient Rights
Set of principles that ensure individuals are treated with respect, dignity and autonomy, including the right to information, informed consent and privacy.
Protected Health Information (PHI) and electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI)
Any individually identifiable health information that is created, used or disclosed in connection with the provision of healthcare services. ePHI is health information in electronic form.
Confidentiality
The legal requirement to protect the privacy of individuals’ health information.
Permitted Disclosures, Mandatory Disclosures and Unauthorized Disclosures
Permitted disclosures of PHI include those for treatment, payment, and healthcare operations. Mandatory disclosures are those required by law. Unauthorized disclosures are impermissible access, use or disclosure of PHI without patient consent.
Minimum Necessary Rule
Requires organizations to limit who uses and discloses PHI only to those that need the information to do their jobs. Limit requests of the use or disclosure of PHI to only what is necessary.
Cybersecurity Awareness
Refers to the understanding and practices individuals and organizations need to protect themselves from cyber threats and recognize potential risks such as phishing scams and malware.
Security Incidents and Breaches
A security incident is any event that compromises the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of PHI. A breach is a specific type of incident where the unauthorized use or disclosure of PHI poses a significant risk of harm to the individual.
HIPAA compliance isn’t a one-time checklist. It’s ongoing, programmatic in nature, and requires demonstrated reasonable diligence to stay in good standing with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR). Anatomy IT can provide you peace of mind with our expert HIPAA compliance services. To learn more, contact us here.
