HIPAA compliance: the law, reality, and recommendations.

The physicians of today and tomorrow face the most daunting set of regulations ever imposed on the practice of medicine. Through the passage of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), the federal government has thrust its regulatory authority into three of the most controversial and cutting-edge issues in medical practice management: privacy, electronic transactions, and security. Through practical insights, the authors' goal is to introduce physicians to HIPAA's basic tenets, the evolutionary nature of the regulations, and the concept that they can manage HIPAA without bankrupting their practices or sealing themselves away from their patients.