HIPAA is not that fat animal with short legs and bulbous head. It’s an acronym that stands for Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and its provisions are bigger than any hippo you have ever seen. One of its main goals was to protect your private health information from anyone except those people or entities you want to see the records. Overall, the goal of protecting your personal medical information is good, as you certainly don’t want that information out in the public. The goal of protection can lead to unintended consequences however, as no medical personnel will reveal records without a privacy release usually called a “HIPAA” form.
