Lexology March 5, 2021
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (the “NPRM”) to modify the Privacy Rule under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH Act) to facilitate the individual right of access and to ease the administrative burden for providers. The Privacy Rule protects the privacy and security of an individual’s medical records and protected health information (PHI). Comments to the NPRM are due by March 22, 2021.
The NPRM modifies the current Privacy Rule in several significant ways. First, the rule strengthens a consumer’s right to access his or her own health information, including electronically stored medical information. Second, the NPRM...