HIPAA

HIPAA logo - Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
PHI includes:
  • Diagnosis
  • Prescription
  • Billing Information
  • Medical History
  • Therapeutic Advice
  • Notes
  • Appointment Memo
  • Phone Messages
  • Sign-in Logs
  • Voice Recorded Transcripts
  • X-rays and Other Images
  • Insurance Information
  • Claim Forms
  • Copies of Forms

Protected Health Information

Protected Health Information (PHI) is the classification which the HHS has given to personal patient information, for which unauthorized release is now a criminal offence.

Discarding Protected
Health Information

Every covered entity has the need to collect and discard protected health information. Casually discarding PHI in the trash is no longer reasonable or acceptable.

It is only a matter of time before the Office of Civil Rights, Auditors and Media start testing the effectiveness of HIPAA. Consumer awareness and interest in privacy protection is at an all time high. It is the reason laws such as HIPAA are being created and enforced.

To ensure compliance with HIPAA, many covered entities now destroy all discarded information

This also includes information on computers. Deleting information does not erase it. It must be destroyed.

Compliance »