On March 9, the Department of Health and Human Services announced it was extending until May 6, 2021, the comment period for proposed changes to regulations implementing the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009.
Read our complete alert to learn
The U.S. Department of Justice announced an indictment in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California against a North Korea-sponsored international cybercriminal organization that infiltrated public and private computer networks, fundamentally compromised these systems, and sought to obtain over a billion dollars from this illicit access.
Read the full article on our
This week, the FBI, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and the Department of the Treasury released a joint advisory report on HIDDEN COBRA — the cyber threat North Korea poses to cryptocurrency — and provided mitigation recommendations for addressing this ongoing threat.
Read our full article on our Subject to Inquiry blog for highlights
Under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and specifically the Privacy Rule under HIPAA’s implementing regulations, patients have a right to access their health information held by health care providers. In 2016, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued guidance stressing the importance of this right. The OCR also implemented a HIPAA Right of Access Initiative as an enforcement priority in 2019, and the OCR has since actively pursued violations under the right of access standard.
Continue Reading OCR Continues to Crack Down on Right of Access Violations
On January 21, 2021, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published proposed modifications to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009 (HITECH).
The proposed rule is part of HHS’ Regulatory Sprint to Coordinated Care, which seeks to promote value-based healthcare by examining federal regulations that impede efforts among healthcare providers and health plans to better coordinate care for patients. Specifically, HHS aims to amend the regulations implemented pursuant to HIPAA and HITECH where the rules present barriers to coordinated care and case management or where they otherwise impose burdens on covered entities that do not increase individuals’ privacy protections.Continue Reading Department of Health and Human Services Announces Proposed Changes to the HIPAA Privacy Rule
On November 4, 2020, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) published an Interim Final Rule with Comment Period (IFC) that delays compliance dates necessary to meet certain requirements related to information blocking initially finalized in the ONC Cures Act Final Rule (Final Rule) in March of 2020. The Final Rule implemented health IT provisions enacted under the 21st Century Cures Act (the Cures Act) to achieve ubiquitous interoperability among health IT systems and to improve patient’s ability to access their electronic health information (EHI). Among these provisions is a prohibition of information blocking. This article will define information blocking, provide and explain exceptions to such practice, detail the IFC’s deadline extensions, and highlight key compliance concerns and solutions regarding these reforms.
Information Blocking
The term “Information Blocking” is broadly defined by the Cures Act as any practice that is likely to interfere with, prevent, or materially discourage access, exchange, or use of EHI when the entity knows (or should know) that it is likely to do so. The Cures Act specifies four types of “actors” that must comply with the information blocking rule:
Continue Reading Information Blocking Compliance: What Providers Need To Know As Deadlines Approach
Did you miss our Dec. 15, 2020, webinar? Is it a holiday wish come true or just the CCPA dressed up in an ugly sweater? Naughty or nice, the CPRA is here. You can watch a replay of the webinar below.
Our festive webinar discusses California’s newest data privacy law, the California Privacy Rights and Enforcement Act of 2020 (CPRA). Passed by ballot initiative during this year’s general election, the CPRA expands and modifies the California Consumer Privacy Act in several significant ways. This webinar covers some of the key changes brought by the CPRA and steps businesses can take now to prepare for this new law.Continue Reading Webinar Replay: Is it a holiday wish come true or just the CCPA dressed up in an ugly sweater? Naughty or nice, the CPRA is here.
Update: On April 1, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited opinion in Facebook v. Duguid, which resolved the circuit split regarding the meaning of “automatic telephone dialing system” under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. For more details, see our alert.
On Dec. 8, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court heard long-awaited oral argument in Facebook v. Duguid on what constitutes an “automatic telephone dialing system” (ATDS) under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).Continue Reading U.S. Supreme Court Signals Narrow Interpretation of TCPA’s Autodialer Definition
On November 9, 2020 the FTC entered into a consent agreement with Zoom Video Communications, Inc. to address concerns over the videoconferencing platform’s security practices. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for a reliable, online videoconferencing and meeting platform skyrocketed. Zoom met that need. It advertised its platform as a secure space with various safety measures to protect user data, including “end-to-end” 256-bit encryption. In short order, individuals, businesses, and organizations quickly flocked to the user-friendly communications platform; and, by the end of April 2020 Zoom’s user base was booming.
Then came a backlash of sorts. The FTC began investigating Zoom’s security practices, and private plaintiffs brought class-action lawsuits alleging violations of the California Consumer Privacy Act and failure to adhere to Zoom’s terms of service. The FTC’s complaint alleged several concerns with Zoom’s advertising and security promises, concluding that Zoom made misleading claims about the strength of its encryption and security of its platform that gave customers a false sense of security. The five-count complaint alleged that Zoom:Continue Reading FTC “Zooms” Into Settlement Agreement with Communications Company Over Concerns with its Security Practices
In the interests of peace, love and understanding, McGuireWoods’ IP and privacy teams released the second season of “Frenemies,” a series of short videos covering legal considerations in advertising.
Continue Reading Frenemies Video Series – Season 2: Companies Don’t Share IP: The Use and Protection of Content