The HIPAA Training for Emergency Medical Services (EMS) course educates EMS workers on how to be compliant with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). This course also outlines the privacy and security laws that prevent security breaches and ultimately, keep patient information safe from cyber-attacks.
HIPAA is a federal law that protects patient security in multiple different ways. In addition to protecting electronic billing, security, and privacy, it improves portability and continuity of insurance for large swathes of people.
If a company is recognized as a covered entity, it must adhere to the HIPAA laws and regulations governing the privacy and security of health information. Covered entities include healthcare providers, health plans, and others. Furthermore, if employed by a covered entity, a business associate’s responsibilities to execute healthcare tasks must be in writing. To preserve the confidentiality and security of protected health information, they must also maintain HIPAA compliance.
Importantly, cybersecurity is the collection of technologies, processes, and practices meant to protect networks, computers, programs, and data from attack, damage, or unauthorized access.
Evidently, the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) is in charge of enforcing HIPAA privacy, security, and breach notification standards. They do so by investigating complaints of breaches, conducting compliance reviews, and educating healthcare communities on the regulations and their civil rights within them.
What you’ll learn
- Definition of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
- About the importance of knowing the HIPAA laws
- A covered entity and the regulated policies and procedures
- About breaches and how to prevent the leaking of Personal Health Information (PHI)
- Stay up to date with your company’s policies and procedures and learn how to take note of any changes
- Your facilities standards and improves the efficiency and effectiveness of the healthcare system by adopting the national regulations for electronic health care transactions, unique health identifiers, and security
Details
Course length: 30 minutes; CEU: 0.5.
Languages: American English
Key features: Audio narration, learning activity, and post-assessment
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Reach out for other courses by visiting the AMC Course Library.
Introduction to HIPAA
“HIPAA” stands for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. Congress enacted HIPAA into law in 1996. HIPAA protects patient health information. Sensitive patient health information can only be disclosed if the patient consents to it, or is at least aware of it.
Healthcare providers need to understand HIPAA laws, as it ensures employees working with sensitive health information are protecting patient data. Additionally, there are many legal penalties if HIPAA is not followed.
The Office of Civil Rights (OCR) enforces HIPAA. They refer violations they view as serious to the Department of Justice, resulting in potential prosecution or fines. The best way to avoid potential punishment is to understand HIPAA law. This course will teach you everything you need to know about HIPAA.
HIPAA Training for EMS – Protected Health Information
Protected health information (PHI) refers to any health-related data that could potentially identify a patient. It includes medical history, test results, insurance records, or even demographic data!
Understanding patient and provider rights in regard to protected health information is a necessity for healthcare providers. Patients have the right to view any of their health records. They can also request records to be sent to third parties. However, there are some types of information patients do not have access to. This course will go in-depth on the rights afforded to patients and providers, including what information patients can and cannot access.
HIPAA Training for EMS – Covered Entities
Another key concept of HIPAA is covered entities. A covered entity is any company that must follow HIPAA rules. There are a variety of criteria that define which companies are and are not covered entities. Health plans, healthcare providers, healthcare clearinghouses, and Medicare part D plans are all examples of covered entities. Additionally, any entity that is exposed to a patient’s protected health information must take steps to secure it.
HIPAA Training for EMS – Breaches
Data breaches are one of the largest threats to protected health information. HIPAA requires companies to notify the government of data breaches when they occur. Electronic protected health information should always be encrypted in order to protect it. The Office of Civil Rights is in charge of investigating data breaches related to HIPAA.
There are many levels of penalties for companies that fail to comply with HIPAA laws in regards to breaches. The government can fine providers up to $1.5 million per year. State attorney generals have the power to enforce HIPAA laws, too. This course educates employees on how to secure information to reduce the risk of breaches and subsequent criminal penalties.
The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA)
Congress passed the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) into law in 2008. GINA prevents employment discrimination based on genetic information. Genetic information encompasses a wide variety of information. In 2013, Congress amended HIPAA to include genetic information as a form of protected health information. This course educates learners on the nuances of genetic information and how to follow HIPAA when handling it.
Online HIPAA Training for EMS
This course is fully online. Employees can complete this training at any time, at their own pace, and in any location they choose. The self-paced nature of the course means staff can learn at their own pace, ensuring they properly understand this necessary information. Employees can learn in an environment that is comfortable to them, ensuring they will digest the information more effectively.
