HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) is United States legislation that provides data privacy and security provisions for safeguarding medical information. The law has emerged into greater prominence in recent years with the many health data breaches caused by cyber attacks and ransomware attacks on health insurers and providers.
The federal law was signed by President Bill Clinton on Aug. 21, 1996. HIPAA overrides state laws regarding the safety of medical information, unless the state law is considered more stringent than HIPAA.
