What does HIPAA stand for?

• A. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
• B. Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act
• C. International Classification of Diseases
• D. Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations

Answer: (A)

The main idea this question tests is knowing what HIPAA stands for. HIPAA stands for Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, a U.S. law enacted in 1996. It created protections for individuals’ health information and established standards for exchanging and protecting electronic health information, including the Privacy Rule and Security Rule. It also includes provisions to standardize health care transactions and coding to improve efficiency and privacy across the industry. The other options point to different things—a later act (HITECH) that strengthened privacy and security and promoted health IT, a medical coding system (International Classification of Diseases), and an accrediting organization (Joint Commission)—none of which is the expansion of the HIPAA acronym.