HHS advisory group eyes action on price transparency, data privacy

PRICE TRANSPARENCY and thirdparty access to health data are two areas that a key HHS advisory panel plans to home in on this year and in 2021.

The Health Information Technology Advisory Committee, which provides policy recommendations to HHS’ Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, last week finalized a list of issues it wants to tackle over the next two years.

All of the tasks proposed in the 2019 report are related to three priority areas mandated by the 21st Century Cures Act: interoperability; privacy and security; and patient access to information.

HITAC suggested adding one new work group this year, which would look into what its members see as a lack of clear rules for how third-parties handle health data that’s not subject to HIPAA.

That’s become a controversial topic in healthcare, as the ONC moves toward finalizing its proposed interoperability rule that would allow patients to download their own health data from providers using third-party apps.

Provider groups have repeatedly expressed concern over the proposal, noting that app developers aren’t held to the same privacy standards as providers (See related article, p. 12).

The interoperability rule will be finalized “relatively soon,” ONC chief Dr. Donald Rucker said during the HITAC meeting.

The 2019 report divides

31 proposed tasks into immediate opportunities— which HITAC would tackle within the next two years, such as the refined focus on third-party access to health data—and longer-term goals.

HITAC in its report also flagged price transparency as an immediate opportunity, given the Trump administration’s recent focus on the topic.

Other immediate activities noted included holding hearings on emerging technologies that help with patient matching, assessing the effectiveness of patient portals and patient-facing mobile apps, and recommending strategies for the ONC to include patient-safety events related to electronic health records in the EHR reporting program. ●