HIPPA is a joke.

Tragically Hip · Aug 6, 2012

HIPAA was sponsored by Republican Senator Kassebaum, signed into law by Clinton in 1996, and went into effect during the Bush administration in 2003. The law has been amended several times since its creation. If there are things in it that you don't like, there is plenty of blame to go around.

Asystole RN · Aug 6, 2012

I never said the Obama admin. is right wing. However, one only has to look at his history on trade policy to see that his admin. is business friendly. Hipaa was passed under Clinton, however, it was the Bush admin. that allowed insurance company's to share info. That was sold to the public as "greater privacy," it was not.

I have the distinct feeling that you do not actually care about HIPAA but are only utilizing the bill as a vehicle to spout anti Republican rhetoric. No where do you mention that 194 Democrat Congressmen voted for the bill and it was signed into law by the Democrat President Bill Clinton.

Tragically Hip · Aug 6, 2012

...Democrat Congressmen..Democrat President Bill Clinton.

The adjective is "Democratic," as in "Democratic congressmen" and "Democratic president Bill Clinton."

It's considered pejorative to use the noun as a verb in this context. (And yes, my capitalization of "congressmen" and "president" is correct. :) )

While the HIPAA bill was sponsored by Republican Nancy Kassebaum in the Senate, it was sponsored by Republican Bill Archer in the House. There were 25 co-sponsors of the bill in the House, and if there were any Democrats among them, I don't recognize the names.

allnurses Guide · Aug 6, 2012

The adjective is "Democratic," as in "Democratic congressmen" and "Democratic president Bill Clinton."
It's considered pejorative to use the noun as a verb in this context. (And yes, my capitalization of "congressmen" and "president" is correct. :) )

He didn't use it as a verb and why is it perjorative?

Tragically Hip · Aug 6, 2012

Oops, I meant as an adjective. Editing time has passed, so unless an admin fixes it, it will stand.

"American" is a adjective. "America" is a noun. You wouldn't say "America congressman" because it's grammatically incorrect. Likewise for "Democratic" versus "Democrat." Not only is it grammatically incorrect, but if you watch political folks interviewed on TV or listen to them on talk radio, you'll notice that using "Democrat" has become a clear insult to Democrats. It saves from having to use more adjectives, such as "unpatriotic" or "stupid." It's a dog-whistle word.

"The Democrat Party" doesn't really sound right, does it?

Asystole RN · Aug 6, 2012

Oops, I meant as an adjective. Editing time has passed, so unless an admin fixes it, it will stand.
"American" is a adjective. "America" is a noun. You wouldn't say "America congressman" because it's grammatically incorrect. Likewise for "Democratic" versus "Democrat." Not only is it grammatically incorrect, but if you watch political folks interviewed on TV or listen to them on talk radio, you'll notice that using "Democrat" has become a clear insult to Democrats. It saves from having to use more adjectives, such as "unpatriotic" or "stupid." It's a dog-whistle word.
"The Democrat Party" doesn't really sound right, does it?

Democrat was used as a literary flourish to delineate the political party of the subject, as to not be confused with an alternative form of democracy.

To say that the use of the term "Democrat" is pejorative in nature while describing a Democrat strikes me as wholly ridiculous. If one were to simply read the context of the use of the term then one would see that it's meaning was entirely free of negative intention.

Thank you for your efforts on policing the grammar here on Allnurses, although a substantive response to the subject of the post would have been appreciated greater.

Editorial Team / Admin · Aug 6, 2012

The debate is way off topic. Please, let's get back to what the OP was talking about, o.k.??

Thanks.

Editorial Team / Admin · Aug 6, 2012

Final warning. Keep to the topic.

GitanoRN, BSN, MSN, RN · Aug 7, 2012

unquestionably, hipaa, is the health insurance portability and accountability act, which sets the standard for protecting sensitive patient data. having said that, any company that deals with protected health information must ensure that all the required physical, network, and process security measures are in place and followed. therefore, we like it or not hippa is here to stay...just saying :cool:

nurse2033, MSN, RN · Aug 7, 2012

Are you American? You should have your facts right before you slam the "uninformed" or maybe you are trying to prove that to be true. You consistently misspelled HIPAA which stands for the Heath Information Portability and Accountability Act. The way insurance companies insure is not affected by this federal law. Since insurance companies are involved in your care they need to know your health history. It sounds like you have an issue with preexisting health problems, which is a problem. Obamacare has provisions to directly address this issue by not allowing insurance companies to refuse you insurance based on your health history.

redhead_NURSE98!, ADN, BSN · Aug 8, 2012

There are two parts to HIPPA. The part the public and the health care industry fret about is the "private information" part. However, the second part of HIPPA is never mentioned. Welcome to the world of bogus law making. HIPPA was sold to the public as the "great protector" of your health information. Sounds great, if you have a health problem, you can be sure your care takers will be vigilant with your info. Who would protest such a law ?? No one would complain about a law that keeps info about your health problems secret !! Toss HIPPA in front of the uninformed and most propagandized people on earth ( the American public) and the law passes with no opposition at all. Let's look at the part of HIPPA the American people know nothing about. The insurance company's do not want to insure sick people, period. Sick people decrease profits. Let's say you work at company A, and company A has an insurance company they use to insure their workers. Ten years later you want to work for company B.. Maybe you were fired or maybe company B just pays better, closer to home, nicer bosses, any of a thousand reasons. During your ten years at company A you developed heart disease. Company B has a different insurance company than company A, so why worry about a thing ??? Company A's insurance company will not say a world about your problem to company's B's insurance company.....right???
Wrong. Company Bs insurance company will learn all about your health history from the other company. Its the "Portability" part of HIPPA. That's right, every test, doctors appointment, surgery, will be passed on without your permission. Your potential new boss will not know about your history. However your new boss will get a heads up on the cost of putting you on his team. Surprise, not a whole lot of protection on the back end of HIPPA. It is tricky legal ground for an employer to refuse a position based of health history. Refuse a position based on cost is a different story. HIPPA is needed. My neighbors do not need to know my health issues, that's fair. HIPPA was sold to us under that pretense. However, the real motive behind HIPPA is insurance company profit at the expense of your privacy.

I'd be interested to know where you got your education on this exhaustive piece of federal legislation.

HIPAA is not a joke. All anyone ever had to do to avoid exclusion of a pre-existing condition under HIPAA, even prior to the enactment of "Obamacare," was maintain continuous coverage under a health insurance plan. And even if you didn't, the absolute max time that you could be excluded was 18 months. I thought it was a pretty good deal myself, compared to pre-HIPAA.

Nor does your "boss" find out anything about your health conditions through a health insurance application. Seriously? How many health insurance applications have you filled out PRIOR to becoming employed? No one's turning you down for a job based on your health insurance application.

Finally, your boss doesn't get a "cost" to insure you individually. Your "cost" will no different than any other employee's cost. The insurance is priced as a GROUP.

Tragically Hip · Aug 9, 2012

Nor does your "boss" find out anything about your health conditions through a health insurance application. Seriously? How many health insurance applications have you filled out PRIOR to becoming employed? No one's turning you down for a job based on your health insurance application.
Finally, your boss doesn't get a "cost" to insure you individually. Your "cost" will no different than any other employee's cost. The insurance is priced as a GROUP.

When you use a lot of expensive medical services, chances are that you're not going to be able to hide the fact from your boss. In a small company, one employee with cancer or other expensive illness can cause the rates an insurance company charges an employer by a large amount.

There is really no way to keep it secret. That is one reason having employers provide one's health insurance is an absurdity, a relic of wage controls from the WW II era.