The US Health and Human Services Department, through the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), announced proposed changes to the Confidentiality of Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Patient Records under 42 CFR part 2 (“Part 2”), which protects patient privacy and records concerning treatment related to substance use challenges from unauthorized disclosures. Specifically, the proposed rule increases coordination among providers in treatment for substance use challenges and increases protections for patients concerning records disclosure to avoid discrimination in treatment. This Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) would implement provisions of Section 3221 of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) that, among other things, require HHS to bring Part 2 into greater alignment with certain aspects of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Privacy, Breach Notification, and Enforcement Rules.
