It’s a move advocates have long been calling for and comes on the heels of a ruling by a federal judge in Texas that could threaten the availability of a common abortion pill.
The Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office for Civil Rights will soon issue a proposal that would prevent an individual’s private medical information from being disclosed to state officials who want to investigate, sue or prosecute an individual, a health care provider or a loved one for seeking out or performing an abortion.
“HHS has heard from patients, providers, and organizations representing thousands of individuals that this change is needed to protect patient-provider confidentiality and prevent private medical records from being used against people for merely seeking, obtaining, providing, or facilitating lawful reproductive health care,” the agency said.
The proposal would update the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, to cover the information of people who may cross state lines to avoid an abortion ban.
It would also apply to any type of reproductive health care that’s protected under federal law, such as miscarriage management, regardless of the state in which the care is provided.
But that information would not necessarily be protected if a patient has an abortion in a state that expressly bans abortion.
The steps announced Wednesday build on the White House’s work to protect abortion access and follow months of pleading by advocates and lawmakers to better protect patients’ reproductive health care info.
