March 11, 2021

HIPAA law is officially getting with the times thanks to the proposed Privacy Rule modifications that are giving the “prehistoric law” a new modernized look. While the planned updates were officially announced last December, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has just added a 45-day extension on the comment period – giving the public some more time to weigh in on what they want they want the updated legislation to cover. 

The original HIPAA Privacy Rule came on the scene in 2003 – you know, like when disposable cameras and listening to Shake Ya Tailfeather by Nelly on your iPod were cool? With as much as technology has changed the world around us, it only makes sense that the laws governing data protection follow suit. Especially since they haven’t changed since being created in the “stone-ages.” 

The new proposed changes go hand-in-hand with the evolving needs of patients and providers to address the issues of patient right of access and “unnecessary regulatory burdens.” Each of these have proven to be trending areas of focus in recent OCR enforcement efforts with three out of the four settlements announced in 2021 resulting from right of access complaints. But improving patient rights and boosting care coordination isn’t only in the government’s best interests, “OCR anticipates a high degree of public interest in providing input on the proposals because the HIPAA Privacy Rule affects nearly anyone who interacts with the health care system,” Acting OCR Director Robinsue Frohboese stated in response to the recent announcement. “The 45-day extension of the comment period to May 6, 2021, will give the public a full opportunity to consider the proposals and submit comments to inform future policy.”

Now, we know what you’re probably thinking – is there really a high degree of public interest over HIPAA???? While the idea might come as a bit of a surprise – the major spike in patient complaints, data breaches, and government enforcement seen over just the past year have given the law some new-found fame. And since everyone loves a good comeback story, this HIPAA revival has proven that staying up on the latest and greatest in regulation changes is worth keeping on your radar.   

So, even though the new extension buys you some more time to comply with the proposed updates – it’s never too early to meet mandatory HIPAA requirements. Unfortunately, the reality is that most practices today would need to perform an excavation, chiseling through mountains of dust, to bring their HIPAA compliance program out of the dark ages. If your compliance program resembles something that hasn’t been touched since Tom ruled MySpace, getting up with the times is not an option and upgrading to an electronic HIPAA solution is the perfect place to start.  

Want to put in your ‘two cents’ on the proposed Privacy Rule updates? Just visit the Federal Register to read the official rule proposal and submit your comments!