Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) in Education

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) protects individual health information, ensuring it's kept private and secure. In education, HIPAA safeguards students' medical records, requiring schools to handle sensitive health data responsibly. This means that any health information schools collect—like student health plans, diagnoses, or treatments—must be kept confidential and only shared with authorized individuals. Schools must ensure that staff are trained to protect this information and that they obtain proper consent before sharing students' health details with others, reinforcing the importance of privacy rights and data protection in educational settings.