On April 2, 2020, the Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) announced a Notification of Enforcement Discretion to allow certain uses and disclosures of Protected Health Information (“PHI”) by HIPAA business associates during the COVID-19 public health emergency.  Understanding that the CDC, CMS and state and local health departments need quick access to COVID-19 related healthcare data in order to fight the pandemic, HHS decided to grant HIPAA business associates greater freedom to cooperate and exchange COVID-19-related information with public health and oversight agencies.
Continue Reading HHS Further Relaxes HIPAA Regulations Governing Use and Disclosure of Protected Health Information During the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency