HIPAA and Telehealth: Protecting Health Information in a Digital World

Abstract

In 1996, the Healthcare Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was enacted to protect the privacy and security of patients’ protected health information. Since then, technology has taken health information far beyond paper medical records and grainy faxes. As telehealth, in the forms of electronic health records, virtual visits, apps, and wearable devices, has increased in popularity, HIPAA clearly is no longer sufficient to guarantee the privacy of the health information it was enacted to protect. Updates to HIPAA are necessary, and those updates should be made with future technological advancements in mind.