[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 149 (Thursday, August 2, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40287-40288]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-19238]


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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.
Time and Date:
    1:00 p.m.-5:30 p.m. August 21, 2001
    8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. August 22, 2001
    8:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. August 23, 2001
    Place: Hubert H. Humphrey Building, Room 705A, 200 Independence 
Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20201.
    Status: Open.
    Background: The National Committee on Vital and Health 
Statistics is the statutory advisory body to the Secretary of Health 
and Human Services in the area of health data, statistics, and 
health information policy. It is established by section 306(k) of 
the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 242k(k)), and its mandate 
includes advising the Secretary on the implementation of the 
Administrative Simplification provisions of the Health Insurance 
Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), Pub. L. No. 104-
191).
    Its Subcommittee on Privacy and Confidentiality monitors major 
developments in health information privacy and confidentiality on 
behalf of the full Committee and makes recommendations to the full 
Committee and assists the Department on implementation of the health 
information privacy provisions of HIPAA.
    Purpose: This meeting of the Subcommittee on Privacy and 
Confidentiality will be conducted as a hearing to receive 
information from the public on the implementation of the regulation 
``Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health 
Information'' (45 CFR parts 160 and 164), promulgated under the 
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996.
    The regulation and further information about it can be found on 
the web site of the Office for Civil Rights, at http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/hipaa/. The regulation has been in effect since April 14, 2001. 
Most entities covered by the regulation must come into compliance by 
April 14, 2003, and many are beginning the process of implementing 
it.
    At this hearing those who provide health care, those who pay for 
it (such as health plans), and those who use health information 
(such as the research and public health communities) and members of 
the public will have an opportunity to address specific issues 
pertaining to the implementation of the regulation.
    The hearing will seek information about practical issues in 
implementation of the regulation, and suggestions about possible 
solutions for such issues. The Subcommittee particularly seeks 
detailed information about the following four issues: (1) The 
regulation's requirements for consent in order to use information 
for treatment, payment, and health care operations, (2) the 
regulation's requirements that those covered by it must make 
reasonable efforts to limit use and disclosure of, and requests for, 
protected health information to the minimum necessary to accomplish 
the intended purpose of the use, disclosure, or request; (3) the 
effects of the regulation on research (both research in which 
treatment is given and records-based research), and (4) the 
regulation's provisions for use and disclosure of health information 
for marketing.
    The format will include one or more invited panels on each of 
the issues and time for questions and discussion. The Subcommittee 
particularly seeks focused, detailed analyses and description, with 
examples, of the effect the regulation is expected to have, based on 
early implementation efforts and preliminary assessments of impact.
    In addition to the panels that will be invited to address these 
issues, members of the public who would like to make a brief (3 
minutes or less) oral comment on one or more of the specified issues 
during the hearing will be placed on the agenda as time permits. To 
be included on the agenda, please contact Marietta Rawlinson (301) 
458-4524, by e-mail at [email protected], or postal address at 
NCHS, Presidential Building, Room 1100, 6525 Belcrest Road, 
Hyattsville, Maryland 20782 by August 7, 2001. Persons wishing to 
submit written testimony only (no more than 4-5 double-spaced 
typewritten pages) should endeavor to submit it by that date. 
Unfilled slots for oral testimony will also be filled on-site as 
time permits. Please consult Ms. Rawlinson for further information 
about these arrangements. Additional information about the hearing 
will be provided on the NCVHS website at http://www.ncvhs.hhs.gov 
shortly before the hearing date.
    Contact Person For More Information: Substantive program 
information may be obtained from Gail Horlick, M.S.W., J.D., Lead 
Staff Person for the NCVHS Subcommittee on Privacy and 
Confidentiality, Office of Research and Demonstrations, Program 
Analyst, National Immunization Program, Centers for Disease Control 
and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road,

[[Page 40288]]

NE, Mailstop E-62, Atlanta, Georgia 30333, telephone (404) 639-8345; 
or Marjorie S. Greenberg, Executive Secretary, NCVHS, NCHS, CDC, 
Room 1100, Presidential Building, 6525 Belcrest Road, Hyattsville, 
Maryland 20782, telephone (301) 458-4245.
    Information about the committee, including summaries of past 
meetings and a roster of committee members, is available on the 
Committee's website at http://www.ncvhs.hhs.gov.

    Dated: July 23, 2001.
James Scanlon,
Director, Division of Data Policy, Office of the Assistant Secretary 
for Planning and Evaluation.
[FR Doc. 01-19238 Filed 8-1-01; 8:45 am]
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