The Health Insurance Portability Accountability Act (HIPAA) is a watershed for the health care industry. HIPAA provisions will result in substantial investments in e-business initiatives that will remove friction and reduce costs substantically in the processing and handling of medical claims and transactions. HIPAA will also result in the deployment of security technology to protect patient and medical information.

Every worker in the medical industry must be trained. Compliance consultants are neded to provide gap analysis and to assist in the implementation of HIPAA practices. HIPAA is enabling the development of national standards to bring about consistency in data formats for health-care transactions. Reduction in paper-handling costs for health-care claims is another driving benefit.

What's new at Texas Southern University?

• More Training, More Time and More Expense! Why?

  
  

• The College of Continuing Education has entered into an alliance with The SgH Group to offer HIPAA certification training to the public community. Three certification training tracks are available: A 1-day course for medical administrators, 3-day course for those that wish to serve as HIPAA Consultants and Compliance Professionals and a two-day course for those that wish to server as HIPAA Security Audit Experts.

  HIPAA compliance requirements start with Protected Health Information (PHI) and ends with e-Business. Tens of thousands of opportunities have been created. EVERY medical center, clearinghouse, insurance company, clinic specialists and business that handle medical patient records must comply with HIPAA guidelines. IT IS THE LAW.

  
  

• This law goes into effect beginning April 14, 2003. Other components of HIPAA legislation continues where the tranaction code set guidelines must be in place by 10/16/03. The skills needed to bring tens of thousands of medical businesses into compliance are very broad. Attorneys, CPAs and accountants, IT professionals, business comsultants, billing and reimbursement experts and administtrators are needed.

  It is estimated that HIPAA cost for 2003 will exceed 16 billion. The cost for HIPAA in 2004 will exceed 230 billion.

All medical administrative and financial transactions must comply with HIPAA guidelines begining 10/16/03. EDI and XML are protocols that are used to transfer ANSI ASCE codes between providers and payers.

HIPAA rules for Security and Electronic Signiture Standards outlines the requirements in five major categories:

1. Administrative Procedures to Guard Data Integrity, Confidentiality and Availability
2. Physical Safeguards to Guard Data Integrity, Confidentiality and Availability
3. Technical Security Services to Gurad Data Integrity, Confidentiality and Availability
4. Technical Security Mechanisms to Guard Against Unathorized Access to Data that is Transmitted over a Communication Network
5. Electronic Signitures