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HIPAA - Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996
About HIPAA:
HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) is an act that was created in 1996 to protect patient health information. HIPAA defines that private health information must be safely maintained, stored and destroyed. It is designed to not only protect one’s health information, but also help eliminate identity theft.
Not only is the information to be properly secured, but when the information is no longer needed it has to be properly destroyed. HIPAA does not specify a particular method for the documents to be destroyed. Most medical facilities have determined that shredding this information is the easiest way to destroy it. On-site document destruction is recommended over off-site shredded for optimal security. HIPAA does not specify a shred size for the shredder.
At Office Zone we also sell chart holders and display racks for medical and office use that are HIPAA compliant. These can be found here.
Office Zone’s Shredding Tips:
At Office Zone we recommend placing a shredder next to each department or desk. This makes it easy to shred documents immediately and cuts down on the chance that information be stolen. Although HIPAA does not specify a particular shred size, we recommend that you use a cross cut / confetti cut shredder. Particles are much harder to re-assemble than strips of paper.
It is also required that data in digital format be destroyed as well. At Office Zone we have a great selection of shredders able to shred CDs, DVDs, floppy disks and ID cards. Keep in mind that we have a low-price guarantee on all our shredders. Our knowledgeable sales associates can help you find the right shredder for your business, hospital or facility. Make yourself HIPAA compliant today!
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