Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996

CLINICAL PREVENTIVE MEDICINE

HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 1996 (HIPAA) PRIVACY RULE AND PUBLIC HEALTH EXEMPTIONS

The HIPAA Privacy Rule provided the first national standards for protecting the privacy of health information. The Privacy Rule regulates the use and disclosure of certain individually identifiable health information, called protected health information (PHI).

Public health practice often requires the acquisition, use, and exchange of PHI to perform public health activities such as health surveillance and outbreak investigation. The policy and guidance resources below help inform determinations on permitted disclosures of PHI for public health activities within the Military Health System.

Policy and Guidance

• DoD 6025.18-R: DoD Health Information Privacy Regulation   

Web Resources

• Health and Human Services: Summary of the HIPAA Privacy Rule
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: HIPAA Privacy Rule and Public Health