Under HIPAA's portability provisions, an individual who maintained continuous prior health coverage...
Select an option to reveal the answer and the full 3-part explanation — free, no signup.
Answer & full 3-part explanation (select an option above, or peek)
Why A is correct
HIPAA's portability rules ensure that a person who keeps continuous health coverage does not lose protection when moving between plans or jobs. Prior coverage that counts as 'creditable coverage' is credited toward any preexisting condition exclusion period a new plan would otherwise impose, so the remaining exclusion is shortened or eliminated entirely. The employer must provide a certificate of creditable coverage when coverage ends. This portability framework, part of the group legislation tested under the A&H outline, is what makes changing jobs less dangerous for people with existing health conditions.
Why the other options are wrong
- B) HIPAA protects continuity; the individual's new coverage rights are preserved rather than lost.
- C) Creditable coverage offsets the new exclusion period rather than restarting it.
- D) HIPAA portability concerns job-based health coverage, not Medicare enrollment.
Memory hook
Prior coverage is time served — creditable coverage shrinks the new plan's exclusion.