The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) is a federal law that required the creation of national standards to protect sensitive patient health information from being disclosed without the patient’s consent or knowledge, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

Failure to comply with HIPPAA regulations is not only dangerous as it increases the risk of confidential information being hacked, it also can lead to financial fines that are crippling to any business, says Danielle Butler, Director of Marketing for The Records Company.