On July 21, 2022, the National Institute of Standards and Technology released an updated draft of its HIPAA Security Rule guidance.
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Health Privacy
NIH Confidentiality Certificates Add Layer of Privacy Protection Post-Dobbs
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Following the ruling in Dobbs, the National Institutes of Health’s certificates of confidentiality offer an important layer of privacy protection to reproductive health research data. …
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FTC Issues Business Alert on Illegal Use and Sharing of Location, Health and other Sensitive Data
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On July 11, 2022, the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection issued a business alert on businesses’ handling of sensitive data, with a particular focus on location and health data.
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President Biden Issues Executive Order Protecting Privacy of Reproductive Health Data
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Posted in Enforcement, Health Privacy
On July 8, 2022, President Biden issued an Executive Order titled, “Protecting Access to Reproductive Health Care Services,” in response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade. …
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HHS Issues Post-Dobbs Guidance to Protect Patient Privacy
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On June 29, 2022, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued two guidance documents to “help protect patients seeking reproductive health care, as well as their providers” following the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. …
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HHS Releases Guidance on Audio-Only Telehealth Practices
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Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights released guidance to help covered entities understand how they can use remote communication technologies for audio-only telehealth in compliance with the HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules. Specifically, the Guidance clarifies how audio-only telehealth can be conducted after OCR’s Notification of Enforcement Discretion for Telehealth, put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, is no longer in effect.
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California Attorney General Reminds Health App Providers of Obligations to Protect Reproductive Health Information
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On May 26, 2022, California Attorney General Rob Bonta issued a press release reminding health app providers that California’s Confidentiality of Medical Information Act applies to mobile apps that are designed to store medical information, which includes health apps such as fertility trackers. …
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California Assembly Proposes Data Privacy Law for Workers
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Assembly Bill 1651, or the Workplace Technology Accountability Act, a new bill proposed by California Assembly Member Ash Kalra, would regulate employers and their vendors regarding the use of employee data.
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FDA Issues Draft Cybersecurity Guidance for Medical Devices
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Posted in Cybersecurity, Health Privacy
On April 8, 2022, the Food and Drug Administration issued Cybersecurity in Medical Devices: Quality System Considerations and Content of Premarket Submissions, a draft guidance document for industry and FDA staff. Industry stakeholders will have until July 7, 2022 to comment on the proposed guidance.
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FTC Settles Children’s Privacy Case with WW (formerly Weight Watchers)
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The Federal Trade Commission has reached a settlement with WW International, Inc. and Kurbo, Inc. over allegations the companies improperly registered children for the “Kurbo by WW” online weight loss management program. In pleadings filed on February 16, 2022, in federal court in the Northern District of California, the FTC claims WW and Kurbo offered…