The US White House proposes to strengthen abortion-related data privacy protections

In an effort to protect patients seeking legal abortions from being charged with a crime by states with stricter laws, the Biden Administration unveiled a package of proposals that would strengthen protections for sensitive health information related to reproductive health care on Wednesday, 12 April 2023.

The measures include a newly proposed Health and Human Services (HHS) rule to strengthen current privacy protections under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act by prohibiting doctors and healthcare providers from disclosing reproductive healthcare information to investigate, prosecute, or sue someone for having a legal abortion. Under the new HHS rule, regulated entities must obtain written confirmation that a request for reproductive health information does not involve restricted uses, such as those related to law enforcement. In addition, HHS provides guidance clarifying that patients have the right to request that their electronic health records remain private.

Reproductive health groups have warned about the risks of law enforcement using sensitive health information as a weapon to punish women seeking abortions and other reproductive care since the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to abortion last summer. The new rule would codify the Biden administration’s guidance from last summer, which stated that, with a few exceptions, they were not required to share health information with law enforcement.