Ethical and legal perspectives in healthcare

Ethical and Legal Perspectives in Health Care (Discussion Questions)

"Because Congress passed ARRA after passing HIPAA, any conflicting provisions between the two statues will be governed by the provisions of ARRA. The two statues can be reconciled because of a provision in ARRA that states any HIPAA statutory provision or regulation remains in effect to the extent that it is consistent with AARA. Discuss one conflicting provision between the two laws and explain how the conflict would be resolved. Include a brief explanation of ARRA and HIPAA."

First student

The 1996 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was primarily designed to protect patient privacy after the explosion of electronic record-keeping in the 1990s. Electronic records are encouraged by the federal government because they have been proven to reduce medical errors and enhance patient safety (Provisions, 2008, AIHA). However, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) substantively expanded the provisions of HIPAA. "Previously, HIPAA applied only to the use and disclosure of individually identifiable health information (known as 'protected health information') by health care providers, health plans, and health care clearinghouses (known collectively as 'covered entities')" (Kastel 2009). While other vendors were not covered by HIPAA, under ARRA they are now subject to the same privacy guidelines as direct providers. This ensures that all companies employed within the healthcare industry, not just simply healthcare providers, are similarly subjected to privacy restrictions as direct providers. No third parties with vested interests can gain access to private healthcare data (like insurers) nor can such indirectly involved entities profit off of patient data. This also establishes the principle that it is not the question of 'who' has private patient data that matters regarding privacy protections, but the fact that on principle patient data must be private.