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In the scramble to prepare their organizations for HIPAA compliance, healthcare financial managers may believe they must commit significant funds to overhauling information systems and hiring consulting firms. But security and confidentiality policies required by HIPAA cannot be implemented solely by upgrading computer systems. HIPAA compliance requires a wholesale change in staff attitudes and behavior regarding patient security and confidentiality. Healthcare organizations can prepare to comply with HIPAA regulations practically and affordably by combining in-house expertise with limited assistance from outside consulting firms. An added benefit of emphasizing the use of in-house resources to prepare the organization for HIPAA compliance is that the organization can develop and retain its own experts on HIPAA.

Preparing for the potential year 2000 computer date problem should have begun long ago. Healthcare organizations should be well along in testing their information systems to ensure that both financial and clinical applications are year 2000 compliant. Some organizations may have started to experience problems, particularly with their financial systems. A noncompliant financial system that generates incorrect data without creating error messages or rejecting transactions poses particularly serious problems for providers.