What significant changes did HITECH introduce to HIPAA in 2009?

HITECH, which stands for the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, introduced several major modifications to the existing HIPAA regulations when it was enacted in 2009. The law aimed to promote the adoption and meaningful use of health information technology, particularly electronic health records (EHR).

One substantial change HITECH made to HIPAA was the enhancement of privacy and security protections for health information. This included increasing the liability of business associates of covered entities, establishing breach notification requirements, and introducing penalties for non-compliance with data security standards.

These modifications ensure that health data is not only protected more rigorously but also that there are clear consequences for entities that fail to uphold these standards. HITECH also influenced the way health records are shared and accessed through its support of electronic health information exchange (HIE).

While increased privacy standards and expansion of coverage to all health data are part of HITECH's impact, the correct characterization here is that it made significant modifications to HIPAA as a whole, rather than creating new processes or broadly expanding coverage for all health data. This reflects the core intent and effect of HITECH on the existing HIPAA framework.