States Look to Repeal Vaccine Mandate and Ask Apple to Improve Data Privacy
Attorneys general from multiple states are asking CMS to end the healthcare worker vaccine mandate while imploring Apple to improve health data privacy on its App Store.
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By - A group of 10 state attorneys general wrote a letter to Apple’s Tim Cook asking the CEO to improve health data privacy in its app store in the wake of Roe v. Wade’s undoing. Meanwhile, another coalition of 22 attorneys general has asked CMS to reverse its healthcare worker vaccine mandate citing harm to patient access to care.
HHS New Part 2 Rule to Align HIPAA
The Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is proposing updates to the Confidentiality of Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Patient Records under 42 CFR Part 2. Changes will align Part 2 with HIPAA and introduce updated breach notification requirements, new HHS enforcement for Part 2 violations, and expanded rights for patients.
“HHS understands how critical it is for patients to better align the Part 2 rules and program with HIPAA,” explained OCR Director Melanie Fontes Rainer. “This proposed rule helps decrease burdens on patients and providers, improves coordination, and increases access to care and treatment while protecting the confidentiality of treatment records.” READ MORE.
Attorney Generals ask Apple to Bolster Health Data Privacy
Ten state attorneys general suggested Apple’s lack of protections threatened consumer’s reproductive health data privacy in a letter to the company’s CEO, Tim Cook. The officials claimed that third-party apps distributed through Apple’s App Store could be used to obtain users’ location, health, and search data. Attorney generals urged Apple to require app developers to accurately represent privacy policies and delete data not essential for the use of the app. READ MORE.
States Ask CMS to Repeal Vaccine Mandate
A group of 22 state attorneys general has asked HHS and CMS to repeal the agency’s healthcare worker vaccine mandate. Led by Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen, the coalition has argued that the mandate is limiting patients’ access to care.
“The Biden administration relied on a purported emergency to sidestep its normal requirements and rush through its flagrantly unconstitutional mandate. But the evidence available at that time, and evidence that has emerged since, demonstrates that full vaccination doesn’t prevent infection or transmission. Breakthrough infections are common, and studies increasingly show heightened health risks associated with the vaccines,” Attorney General Knudsen said in a press release. READ MORE.
NYC Vaccinations Saved $28 Billion
A JAMA Network study estimated that New York City’s Vaccine for All Campaign saved $27.96 billion in healthcare costs. According to the publication, the city contributed nearly $2.44 billion in direct costs to the vaccine campaign between December 14, 2020, and January 31, 2022. Indirect costs, including loss of workdays for getting a vaccination or adverse side effects, amounted to $2.39 billion. READ MORE.
FDA Approves Ovarian Cancer Drug
The FDA granted ImmunoGen accelerated approval for its drug ELAHARE, used to treat platinum-resistant ovarian cancer. In a small trial, the drug achieved an effective response in almost a third of the participants.
"Platinum-resistant ovarian cancer is a notoriously challenging disease to treat. Given there have been no new therapies approved by FDA for this indication since 2014, ELAHERE's accelerated approval is a tremendous advance in the ovarian cancer treatment paradigm,” said Anna Berkenblit, MD, Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of ImmunoGen, in the press release. READ MORE.
