Modifications Proposed to the HIPAA Privacy Rule

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to modify the standards for the Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information (Privacy Rule) under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009 (HITECH Act). The modifications are intended to address standards that may impede the transition to value-based health care by limiting or discouraging care coordination and case management communications among individuals and covered entities (including hospitals, physicians, and other health care providers, payors, and insurers) or posing other unnecessary burdens.