https://doi.org/10.4081/gh.2010.182

The effects of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act privacy rule on influenza research using geographical information systems

Vol. 5 No. 1 (2010)
Submitted: 19 December 2014
Accepted: 19 December 2014
Published: 1 November 2010
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), influenza, infectious disease, outbreak, infectious disease transmission, geographical information systems.
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Authors

Norisse Tellman
nmisdary@gmail.com
National Center for Occupational Health and Infection Control, Veterans Health Administration, Gainesville, FL, United States.
Eric R. Litt
Rehabilitation Outcomes Research Center, Veterans Health Administration, Gainesville, FL, United States.
Caprice Knapp
National Center for Occupational Health and Infection Control, Veterans Health Administration, Gainesville, FL; Departments of Epidemiology and Health Policy Research, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States.
Aaron Eagan
National Center for Occupational Health and Infection Control, Veterans Health Administration, Gainesville, FL, United States.
Jing Cheng
Division of Oral Epidemiology and Dental Public Health University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States.
Lewis J. Jr Radonovich
National Center for Occupational Health and Infection Control, Veterans Health Administration, Gainesville, FL, United States.
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) privacy rule was enacted to protect patients' personal health information from undue disclosure. Despite its intention to protect patients, recent reports suggest that HIPAA restrictions may be negatively impacting health research. Quantitative, visual geographical and statistical analysis of zip code geographical information systems (GIS) mapping, comparing 3-digit HIPAA-compliant and 5-digit HIPAA-non-compliant simulated data, was chosen to identify and describe the type of distortion that may result. It was found that unmitigated HIPAA compliance with HIPAA mapping rules distorted the GIS zip code data by 28% leading to erroneous results. Thus, compliance with HIPAA privacy rule when mapping may lead investigators to publish erroneous GIS maps.

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How to Cite

Tellman, N., Litt, E. R., Knapp, C., Eagan, A., Cheng, J., & Radonovich, L. J. J. (2010). The effects of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act privacy rule on influenza research using geographical information systems. Geospatial Health, 5(1), 3–9. https://doi.org/10.4081/gh.2010.182

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