Investor’s Business Daily Looks at Impact of HIPAA Regulations on Health Sector
Investor's Business Daily today reports on the impact the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, which is designed to streamline federal reimbursements and protect patient privacy, will have on the health care industry, software companies and other technology firms. The law was signed six years ago, and deadlines for data security and privacy regulations are "coming fast," Investor's Business Daily reports. Two deadlines for verifying that patient records are secure have passed; by next October, most businesses will be required to have their medical records systems certified, and Medicare will require electronic claims filing for all "but the smallest companies." Because much of the health care industry has been "untouched" by advances in information technology, tech firms, including Microsoft, are competing to help health care companies meet HIPAA requirements. Complying with HIPAA is expected to cost the industry nearly $43 billion, according to the BlueCross BlueShield Association, and $17.5 billion according to HHS. Not all that spending will go toward technology upgrades, Investor's Business Daily reports. "IT spending will be peanuts compared with training costs," David Jevans, vice president for marketing at Valicert, a network security firm, said (Brown, Investor's Business Daily, 11/11).
This is part of the California Healthline Daily Edition, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.