Legislation would align patient confidentiality regulations with HIPAA

Reps. Tim Murphy (R-PA) and Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) Friday introduced the Overdose Prevention and Patient Safety Act (H.R. 3545), AHA-supported legislation that would align Part 2 federal regulations governing the confidentiality of substance use disorder treatment records with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act to ensure patients with substance use disorders receive the integrated care they need. A coalition of more than 30 health care stakeholder organizations, including the AHA, voiced support for the bill. “Hospitals and health systems see first-hand every day the devastating effects of substance use disorders, including opioid addiction, on patients, families and communities,” said AHA Executive Vice President Tom Nickels. “Congress passed measures providing critical resources to communities battling the epidemic last year, however, to ensure comprehensive treatment more needs to be done to allow for the appropriate sharing of patient substance use records. We thank Congressmen Tim Murphy and Earl Blumenauer for introducing this important bipartisan legislation, and we look forward to working with Congress to enact it.”