Final answer:
HIPAA includes rights that protect against unauthorized release of individually identifiable health information, emphasizing the confidentiality of patient records and setting strict standards for healthcare providers and insurance companies.
Step-by-step explanation:
To delve into the specifics, HIPAA, a law passed in 1996, established standards for the protection of patient information. It was designed to ensure that healthcare providers and insurance companies handle health records with the utmost confidentiality. This legislation has had a considerable impact on the healthcare system, restricting the use of a patient's health information to only those actively providing healthcare services to the patient. Under HIPAA, ethical and legal considerations must be taken into account when handling sensitive information, such as when contemplating notifying a patient's sexual partners about potential health risks. Doing so without patient consent could constitute a violation of the patient's privacy rights.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), also known as Obamacare, which was signed into law in 2010, further enforces this stance. PPACA pushes the United States towards universal coverage and also enforces policies that intersect with HIPAA's privacy regulations. Thus, any new policies developed must balance treatment costs, patient quality of life, and privacy risks. When considering ethical questions, such as whether to inform sexual partners about potential STD risks, the stringent rules set forth by HIPAA must guide the decision process. The law remains firm in protecting patient privacy unless express consent is provided by the patient.