The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is a Federal law which governs the privacy and security of patient information.
Privacy deals with protected health information (PHI) - how we use it and disclose it, and patient rights.
PHI is "individually identifiable health information" in any form:
- Paper
- Electronic (computer/smart phone/usb drive)
- Verbal conversations
Security outlines safeguards for electronic patient information or ePHI. ePHI may be contained in:
- desktop computers
- laptops
- usb/thumb drives
- pagers
- smart phones