On August 21, 1996, then President Bill Clinton, signed Public Law 104-191 (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). To improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the health care system, HIPAA includes a series of “administrative simplification” (AS) procedures that required the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to adopt national standards for electronic health care transactions. By ensuring consistency throughout the industry, these national standards will make it easier for health plans, doctors, hospitals and other health care providers to process claims and other transactions electronically. The law also requires the adoption of security and privacy standards in order to protect personal health information.

Medicaid and Nevada Check-Up Recipients

Helpful Hints About Managing Your Health Information

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) establishes standards to protect the privacy of the health information that the Division of Health Care Financing and Policy (DHCFP) keeps about you.

As stated in our Notice of Privacy Practices, you have certain rights to access and control how your health information is used. For example, you can ask us for a copy of your records, authorize others to receive a copy, ask us to make corrections or changes to your record, and request a list of the times that your health information has been shared with others. (To read our Notice of Privacy Practices, a link is provided below.)

(Click here for more information about how to make requests.)

Covered Entities and HIPAA

Compliance Resources/Assistance

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 significantly impacts the way that covered entities may use and disclose protected health information. A covered entity is a health plan, a health care clearinghouse or a health care provider that transmits any health information in electronic form.

If your organization is a health care provider that does business with Medicaid and/or Nevada Check-up, remember that HIPAA allows the exchange of protected health information for the purposes of treatment, payment and health care operations. Requests for information that assists in determining eligibility or payment pre-authorization do not require authorization from the recipient/patient. (See 45 CFR § 164.502 and 164.506.)

(Click here for more information about compliance and links to resources.)

USEFUL LINKS: Notice of Privacy Practices (English) (PDF)
Notice of Privacy Practices (Spanish) (PDF)