The Secretary of Health and Human Services ("HHS") is expected to publish today the Omnibus Final Rule which modifies the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act ("HIPAA") in order to:
- implement statutory amendments under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act ("HITECH Act"), to strengthen privacy and security protections for individuals' health information;
- modify the (interim final) rule for breach notifications involving "unsecured" protected health information ( "PHI") (the "Breach Notification Rule");
- modify the HIPAA privacy rule to strengthen privacy protections for individuals' genetic information; and
- make certain other modifications to the HIPAA privacy, security, breach notification and enforcement rules (the "HIPAA Rules"), to improve their workability and effectiveness, and increase flexibility for and decrease (administrative) burden on HIPAA regulated entities (i.e., "covered entities" and their "business associates)."
Effective Date. The Omnibus Final Rule is effective March 26, 2013.
For the full text, printable version of this Alert, click here.
Please contact any of the following Roetzel attorneys for further information:
Alan H. Daniels
407.245.2426 | adaniels@ralaw.com
Brian E. Dickerson
239.649.2702 | bdickerson@ralaw.com
Robert B. Graziano
216.615.7404 | rgraziano@ralaw.com