HIPAA - Privacy Act

• Date: February 18, 2011
• Source: Admin

Privacy is personal to all individuals and in there is a constant need for its protection and efforts are directed to stop such information from being compromised. The Privacy Act was enacted in 1974 in the US and it seeks to put into place a Code of Fair Information Practice governing the collection, maintenance use and dissemination of personally identifiable information about individuals. This Act concerns itself with all information that is maintained in systems of records by the federal agencies. The Privacy Act prohibits the disclosure of information from a system of records without the written consent of the subject individuals, unless the disclosure is with respect to certain statutory exceptions to the rule. When an individual seeks to access or amend their records, they need to adhere to the guidelines as laid down in the Act.