"The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) took a break from dismantling the US public health system this week to announce plans to take "an active enforcement stance" against health care actors [PDF] that "restrict patients' engagement in their care by blocking the access, exchange, and use of electronic health information," the agency said in a press release. "Patients must have unfettered access to their health information as guaranteed by law," acting HHS Inspector General Juliet Hodgkins said in an agency press release."
"The law Hodgkins referred to is the 21st Century Cures Act, which was signed into law by President Obama in 2016. The rule requires that patients have easy electronic access to their health information, including through whatever app they choose to use, at no cost for basic API access, and also requires that health IT developers make their systems usable by providers without excessive fees or technical barriers."
"While a great idea in principle, the Cures Act only set civil monetary penalties for developers, health information networks, and exchanges that violate those sharing rules, leaving penalties for providers undefined and allowing health care data to be locked down with little consequence if they didn't comply. Provider disincentives were left for HHS to determine, and a draft proposal didn't appear until late 2023."
HHS announced plans to take an active enforcement stance against health care actors that block patient and provider access to electronic health information. The agency emphasized that patients must have unfettered access to their health information as guaranteed by law. The 21st Century Cures Act requires easy electronic access for patients, free basic API access, and mandates that health IT developers avoid excessive fees or technical barriers. Initial penalties covered developers, networks, and exchanges, while provider penalties remained undefined for years. Provider disincentives were not finalized until July of last year, delaying comprehensive enforcement.
Read at Theregister
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]