Planned Parenthood President Applauds Biden Administration Rule to Strengthen HIPAA Privacy Protections 

WASHINGTON DC - Today, the Biden administration announced additional protections under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) in order to protect reproductive health data – a critically important step amidst ongoing attacks that have jeopardized the privacy of patients and health care providers. This rule aims to protect patients’ access to reproductive health care, regardless of age, gender, pregnancy status or outcome, and prioritizes patient privacy.

Statement from Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America:

“The Biden administration has been committed to protecting and expanding reproductive health care to ensure patients have the freedom to make decisions about their own bodies. This welcome action is a major, necessary step to protect patient privacy and ensure that health care providers can do their jobs, and limit political interference in patients’ access to care.  

“We are in the midst of a public health crisis, where politically-motivated politicians hostile to our rights and freedoms are attacking every facet of reproductive health care, from abortion access to birth control. Everyone, no matter where they live or how much money they have, should be able to access the health care they need, free of fear that their health information will be compromised.” 

Important modifications proposed by this rule include: 

• Better protecting people’s private health information from being used against them when they seek legal reproductive health care.
• Ensuring patients can be open and honest with their providers about all of the care they have received, without fear that an anti-reproductive-health state could use that information against them in an investigation, criminal prosecution, or civil or administrative proceeding.

Any time access to health care is restricted, people suffer. Politically motivated attacks on reproductive health care have devastating real-life consequences, disproportionately harming Black, Latino, and Indigenous communities, people with low incomes, and those living in rural areas — the same people who already face systemic barriers to accessing health care.

This rule change comes nearly 10 months after the overturning of Roe v. Wade and just a few days following a federal judge’s ruling to challenge the FDA’s approval of mifepristone, one of the medications used in medication abortion.

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Planned Parenthood is the nation’s leading provider and advocate of high-quality, affordable sexual and reproductive health care for all people, as well as the nation’s largest provider of sex education. With more than 600 health centers across the country, Planned Parenthood organizations serve all patients with care and compassion, with respect, and without judgment, striving to create equitable access to health care. Through health centers, programs in schools and communities, and online resources, Planned Parenthood is a trusted source of reliable education and information that allows people to make informed health decisions. We do all this because we care passionately about helping people lead healthier lives. Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that supports the independently incorporated Planned Parenthood affiliates operating health centers across the U.S.