On February 8, 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) finalized long-awaited modifications to the Confidentiality of Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Patient Records regulations at 42 C.F.R. Part 2, which requires individuals or entities that receive federal funding and provide SUD treatment to implement additional privacy protections and obtain specific consent before using and disclosing SUD treatment records (see 42 C.F.R. § 2.11).
Two new federal rules will make it easier for consumers to access, use and transmit their personal healthcare information using an app on their smartphone or tablet. The regulations implement prior legislation and advance the current Administration’s intent to empower patients to be better consumers and transform the healthcare industry.
The two final rules were released on March 9 by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS): from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), the 21st Century Cures Act: Interoperability, Information Blocking, and the ONC Health IT Certification Program final rule; and, from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the final rule on Interoperability and Patient Access.