[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 36 (Wednesday, February 24, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8363-8364]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-3663]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Office for Civil Rights; Workshop on the HIPAA Privacy Rule's De-
Identification Standard; Notice of Meeting
AGENCY: Office for Civil Rights, HHS.
ACTION: Notice of meeting.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
This notice announces a forthcoming workshop organized by the
Office for Civil Rights (OCR). The meeting will be open to the public.
General Purpose of the Meeting: Section 13424 (c) of the Health
Information Technology for Clinical and Economic Health (HITECH) Act,
part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA),\1\
requires HHS to issue guidance on methods for de-identification of
protected health information as designated in the Health Insurance
Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule. In response to
this mandate, OCR is soliciting stakeholder input from experts with
practical technical and policy experience to inform the creation of
guidance materials. OCR is collecting views regarding de-identification
approaches, best practices for
[[Page 8364]]
implementation and management of the current de-identification standard
and potential changes to address policy concerns.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Public Law 111-5.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
To facilitate timely collection of information, OCR is organizing
an in-person two (2)-day workshop that will consist of multiple panels.
Each panel will address a specific topic related to the Privacy Rule's
de-identification methodologies and policies. The workshop will be open
to the public and each panel presentation will be followed by a
question-answer period. At the present time, this is the only workshop
planned.
Date and Time: The meeting will be held on March 8, 2010, from 8 a.m.
to 5:15 p.m./Eastern Time and March 9, 2010 from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30
a.m.
Location: Washington Marriott at Metro Center, 775 12th Street NW.,
Washington, District of Columbia 20005. The hotel telephone number is
202-737-2200.
Contact Person: Andra Wicks, Office for Civil Rights, HHS, 200
Independence Ave, SW., Washington, DC 20201, 202-205-2292, Fax: 202-
205-4786, e-mail: [email protected]. Please call the contact person
for information on this meeting, view workshop updates on our Web site
at http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy, or register for the workshop at
https://www.fedmeetings.net/common/registration.cfm?mid=2852.
Agenda: The two (2)-day workshop will explore the following topics
related to the de-identification of protected health information
standard \2\:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ 45 CFR 164.514(b).
--Methodological Issues Associated with HIPAA Privacy Rule De-
Identification.
--Statistical Disclosure Control and HIPAA Privacy Rule Protections.
--Anonymization and the HIPAA Privacy Rule.
--Policy Interpretations of HIPAA Privacy Rule De-Identification
Requirements.
--De-Identification and Legal Contracts.
Each ninety (90) minute panel will include presentations by
industry experts followed by a discussion period. The discussion will
include questions posed by workshop participants and the general public
attending the meeting in-person and via Web cast.
OCR intends to make background material available to the public no
later than two (2) business days prior to the meeting. If OCR is unable
to post the background material on its Web site prior to the meeting,
it will be made publicly available at the location of the workshop, and
the background material will be posted on OCR's Web site after the
meeting, at http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy.
Procedure: Interested persons may present data, information, or
views, orally or in writing, on issues pending before the workshop.
Written submissions may be made to [email protected], with the
workshop title ``Workshop on the HIPAA Privacy Rule's De-Identification
Standard'' in the subject line on or before Friday, March 5, 2010.
Oral comments from the public will be permitted after each panel.
Time allotted for each presentation is limited to three minutes. If the
number of speakers requesting to comment is greater than can be
reasonably accommodated during the scheduled open public hearing
session, OCR will take written comments after the meeting until Friday,
March 12, 2010.
After the workshop, OCR will synthesize the input from workshop
panelists and general comments to incorporate into guidance. The
guidance will be posted on the OCR Web site for public comment. OCR may
provide revised guidance incorporating the public comment.
OCR welcomes the attendance of the public at this workshop. Seating
is limited at the location, and OCR will make every effort to
accommodate persons with physical disabilities or special needs. If you
require special accommodations due to a disability, please contact
Andra Wicks at least seven (7) days in advance of the meeting.
Dated: February 17, 2010.
Zinethia L. Clemmons,
Health Information Privacy Specialist, Office for Civil Rights, Health
Information Privacy Division.
[FR Doc. 2010-3663 Filed 2-23-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4153-01-P