Is the ΗΙΡΑΑ final rule on protected health information enough? Εthical considerations on the marketing and sale of an individual's health information

For public health practitioners and researchers, access to large pools of patient data for use in targeted interventions is a priceless resource. However, the implications of the final rule regarding the transfer of protected health information (PHI) may give the field a reason to pause. HIPAA's final rule makes an attempt to regulate the way a patient's health information is used by third parties with most restrictions falling outside the more familiar safe harbors laid out by the anti-kickback statute. But, due to the uncertainty in the emerging market for health information and the ways through which illegal sharing of data is prosecuted, these large data sets may pose more liabilities rather than expanding our public health assets. This presentation will attempt to more fully describe the way third parties gain access protected health information under the final rule and the ethical considerations of the use of such information to promote the objectives of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Additionally, this presentation will explore the steps that should be taken to ensure a patient's health information is used to improve health rather than placing additional burden on the growing health disparities gap and why public health needs to approach patient health information contained in “big data” with cautious optimism.