Which of the following statements is true regarding HIPAA?

The statement that HIPAA protects the confidentiality of patient health information is true. Enacted in 1996, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) established national standards to safeguard sensitive patient health information. This law aims to ensure that individuals' medical records and other personal health information are properly handled and kept private. As part of this act, covered entities, including healthcare providers and health plans, are required to implement privacy protections and safeguard patient information from unauthorized access.

This focus on confidentiality means that healthcare providers and workers must take care to protect patient information, only sharing it with authorized individuals involved in the patient's care or for billing and payment purposes. Thus, maintaining patient privacy is a fundamental principle of HIPAA.