What does HIPAA primarily regulate?

HIPAA, or the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, primarily regulates the privacy and security of health information. It was enacted to ensure that individuals' health information is properly safeguarded and to set national standards for the protection of such data.

The law imposes specific requirements on healthcare providers, health plans, and other entities that handle protected health information (PHI). Under HIPAA, individuals have the right to access their medical records and request corrections to their health information, which reinforces the importance of privacy in healthcare.

While other areas, such as educational records or financial data, have their own regulatory frameworks—FERPA governs educational records and various financial regulations cover financial data—these fall outside the scope of HIPAA. Likewise, HIPAA does set some standards for data security in electronic communications, but its primary focus is the protection of health information, making the correct choice clear.