Protecting Privacy: Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, Twenty-First Century Cures Act, and Social Media

Rachel V Rose; Abhay Kumar; Joseph S Kass

doi:10.1016/j.ncl.2023.03.007

Protecting Privacy: Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, Twenty-First Century Cures Act, and Social Media

Neurol Clin. 2023 Aug;41(3):513-522. doi: 10.1016/j.ncl.2023.03.007. Epub 2023 May 31.

Authors

Rachel V Rose¹, Abhay Kumar², Joseph S Kass³

Affiliations

¹ Rachel V. Rose - Attorney At Law PLLC, PO Box 22718, Houston, TX 77227, USA; Center for Medical Ethics & Health Policy, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
² Vivian L. Smith Department of Neurosurgery, McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, 6400 Fannin Street, MSB 7.154, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
³ Center for Medical Ethics & Health Policy, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Neurology, Baylor College of Medicine, 7200 Cambridge Street 9th Floor, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Menninger Deptartment of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA. Electronic address: kass@bcm.edu.

PMID: 37407103
DOI: 10.1016/j.ncl.2023.03.007

Abstract

Advances in electronic health record technology, the ever-expanding use of social media, and cybersecurity sabotage threaten patient privacy and render physicians and health care organizations liable for violating federal and state laws. Violating a patient's privacy is both an ethical and legal breach with potentially serious legal and reputational consequences. Even an unintentional Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) violation can result in financial penalties and reputational harm. Staying complaint with HIPAA requires vigilance on the part of both individuals with legitimate access to protected health information (PHI) and the organizations handling that PHI.

Keywords: HIPAA; Information blocking; Privacy rule; Social media; Twenty-First Century Cures Act.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Confidentiality
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act*
Humans
Privacy
Social Media*
United States