[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 1 (Friday, January 2, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Page 80]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-34191]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES


National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics: Meeting

    Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the Department of 
Health and Human Services announces the following advisory committee 
meeting.

    Name: National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics (NCVHS), 
Subcommittee on Privacy and Confidentiality.
    Times and Dates: 9 a.m.-5 p.m., January 28, 1998; 9 a.m.-5 p.m., 
January 29, 1998.
    Place: Room 303A, Hubert H. Humphrey Building, 200 Independence 
Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20201.
    Status: Open.
    Purpose: The Subcommittee will conduct two workshops designed to 
gather information, stimulate dialogue, and identify issues on the 
topics of identifiability of data (January 28) and the use of 
registries (January 29). The context for the discussions will be the 
data needs of the health care system, the privacy of individuals, 
the Secretary's legislative recommendations on the confidentiality 
of individually-identifiable health information, and the current 
legislative efforts on health privacy.
    On the first day the Subcommittee is interested in looking at 
how personal health information might be collected, stored, 
maintained, and disclosed for research, health care, quality 
assurance, cost containment, law enforcement, and other purposes so 
that individual identities might be protected. The goal is to look 
for ways to support important functions that rely on personal health 
information without unduly impinging on the privacy interests of 
individuals.
    On the second day the Subcommittee is interested in exploring 
the purposes and function of health and medical registries in the 
U.S. and the extent to which they may pose or lessen threats to the 
privacy and confidentiality of individuals whose data is included in 
the registry. The goal is to identify the range or current 
activities that might qualify as registries and to put more 
information on the public record about the manner in which 
registries collect, maintain, and disclose personal health 
information. Workshop participants are expected to include a variety 
of invited public and private sector representatives whose expertise 
can contribute to addressing the workshop topics.
    Contact Person for More Information: Substantive program 
information as well as a roster of committee members may be obtained 
from Judith Galloway, Division of Data Policy, Office of the 
Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, DHHS, Room 440-D, 
Humphrey Building, 200 Independence Avenue S.W., Washington, D.C. 
20201, telephone (202) 690-7100, or Marjorie S. Greenberg, Executive 
Secretary, NCVHS, NCHS, CDC, Room 1100, Presidential Building, 6525 
Belcrest Road, Hyattsville, Maryland 20782, telephone 301/436-7050. 
Additional information about the full Committee is available on the 
NCVHS website, where the tentative agenda for the Subcommittee 
meeting will also be posted when available: http://aspe.os.dhhs.gov/
ncvhs.

    Dated: December 24, 1997.
James Scanlon,
Director, Division of Data Policy.
[FR Doc. 97-34191 Filed 12-31-97; 8:45 am]
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