HIPAA is the Health Insurance and Portability Act of 1996. One primary reason Congress passed HIPAA was to promote efficient processing of health care transactions by establishing uniform national standards for electronic commerce in the health care industry. These standards allow employers, payors and providers to share electronic health care information using a common format and common set of codes and identifiers.

Congress recognized that a system allowing health information to be shared electronically could be subject to fraud and abuses. They required the Department of Health and Human Services to establish rules to safeguard the confidentiality of health information. The HIPAA Privacy Rule protects the confidentiality of health information by establishing when and to whom this information may be released. The Privacy Rule applies to Protected Health Information maintained in paper or electronic form. The HIPAA Security Rule will require payors and providers to adopt policies and procedures and to establish technical security mechanisms to safeguard health information stored, transmitted or processed electronically.

ppoNEXT and HIPAA

ppoNEXT and its subsidiaries including ppoNEXT West, Inc.; HealthStar, Inc.; ppoNEXT Southwest, Inc.; MasterCare Companies, Inc.; and Health Care Evaluation, Inc. are committed to full compliance with HIPAA regulations. Our HIPAA Compliance Program includes the following initiatives: establish a HIPAA Compliance Team, comprised of representatives from all corporate and operational departments, to be responsible for the implementation of privacy and security regulations; implement Company-wide policies and procedures to ensure HIPAA compliance regarding use and disclosure of health information; design HIPAA-compliant contract language for client and provider contracts; modify or enhance our system to meet HIPAA electronic data interchange standards.

One of ppoNEXT's major objectives is to enhance customer satisfaction through our process of continuous service improvement. As we transition to meet our HIPAA compliance initiatives, we will continue our commitment to serve our customers, clients, providers and patients.

To obtain information regarding ppoNEXT's HIPAA Compliance Program, contact the ppoNEXT Compliance Team at 214.267.3355.