HIPAA is an acronym for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. It is legislation that provides data privacy and security provisions for protecting medical information. HIPAA is intended to protect the privacy and security of patient confidentiality. The Privacy Rule, or Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information, establishes national standards for the protection of specific health information that is held or transferred in electronic form. For more information on HIPAA policies and procedures, review Understanding the Basics and Key Requirements of HIPAA Compliance.