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Group Calls for ‘Next Generation’ of Privacy in Health IT Policy
The Health Privacy Project (HPP) at the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) released a major policy paper calling for the adoption of "next generation" privacy policies to be built into the nation's rapidly advancing health information technology system. The recently passed stimulus package included $20 billion to help jumpstart and build out a nationwide health IT network and took several steps toward addressing the public's privacy concerns.
The HPP paper, "Privacy As An Enabler, Not An Impediment: Building Trust Into Health Information Exchange," is published in the current issue of Health Affairs, the nation's foremost journal on health policy. This issue is devoted to health IT and includes articles from key stakeholders involved in the implementation of nationwide health IT system.
Privacy issues have been seen as a barrier to the adoption of electronic health information exchange or have focused on solutions that place the burden for protecting privacy on individuals, a scenario that creates its own obstacles to sharing information for important healthcare purposes. Next-generation privacy policy is a comprehensive framework that includes core privacy principles based on fair information practices, network design that facilitates the movement of information while protecting privacy, and strong oversight and enforcement. That next generation framework should build on the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), fill its gaps, and include additional protections for the migration of information out of the healthcare system, such as through personal health records.
"Although some persist in positioning privacy as an obstacle to achieving the promise of health IT, it is clear the opposite is true: enhanced privacy and security will build the public trust and confidence that are critical to the rapid adoption and implementation of health IT," said HPP Project Director Deven McGraw.
HPP's paper makes a number of recommendations that were included in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Those recommendations include:
• Improved enforcement of HIPAA by ensuring all those in the traditional healthcare system who access, use, and disclose personal health information can be held accountable for compliance with the rules
• Tightened rules against use of information for marketing purposes
• Ensuring individuals can easily and inexpensively get electronic copies of their health information
"Those provisions take concrete steps toward establishing the common framework of protections needed to build public trust in health IT," said CDT President Leslie Harris.
"Appropriate implementation of these provisions will be critical as we move into health reform," Harris said. "Ensuring that these provisions remain strong during the regulatory process is the critical next step."
ARMA International Washington Policy Brief, April
