Californian Sentenced to Prison for HIPAA Violation, Essay Example

Abstract

This paper provides a summary of the case of Huping Zhou in relation to the HIPAA violations he committed while stating whether or not Zhou could face further charges under the HIPAA. This paper also summarizes and explains the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act- its provisions and penalties.

HIPAA Violation

The physician Huping Zhou was charged of four counts of misdemeanor for accessing medical records of his supervisor’s high-profile patients. This is an act considered to be in violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act for which he was fined a total of $2000 and imprisoned for up to 4 months- the first imprisonment sentence for a HIPAA violation case in the United States. Facts of the case stated that upon receiving a notice from the UCLA that he is being dismissed from his job due to performance issues, he accessed the medical records of high-profile celebrities without authorization (Dimick, 2010).

HIPAA is also known as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. It was passed by the United States of America congress in order to a) insurance coverages and transfers for the American workforce and their families in the event that they lost or change jobs; b) reduce the cases of abuse and fraud in the health-care; c) dictates the standard concerning health care information on electronic billing and other health-care related processes and; d) necessitates the safety and confidential treatment of protected health information (“Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, 2015). The penalties for the violation of the law can range from $100 to $50,000 and an imprisonment for up to 1 year depending on what tier the violation falls in. Although the violations of the provisions of the HIPAA can result to criminal prosecution, Huping Zhou should not be criminally prosecuted. It is true that he intentionally and illegally accessed the medical records but the situation could have been avoided had UCLA followed the protocol for proper termination. His access to the ePHI and the UCLA’s medical records should have been terminated right away and not made available for months even after his actual termination.

Citations and References

Dimick, C. (2010). Californian Sentenced to Prison for HIPAA Violation. Retrieved from http://journal.ahima.org/2010/04/29/californian-sentenced-to-prison-for-hipaa-violation/

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. (2015). Retrieved from http://www.dhcs.ca.gov/formsandpubs/laws/hipaa/Pages/1.00WhatisHIPAA.aspx