“ONC’s information blocking regulations apply to interferences with the access, exchange, or use of electronic health information (EHI) (45 CFR Part 171) and define certain exceptions to the definition of information blocking. Thus, it’s important that those subject to the information blocking regulations – health care providers, developers of certified health IT, and health information networks/exchanges (cumulatively, “actors”) – understand what health information the regulations cover. So, what is EHI anyway?”
What’s EHI?
“EHI is defined as electronic protected health information (ePHI) to the extent that it would be included in a designated record set (DRS), regardless of whether the group of records are used or maintained by or for a covered entity. The EHI definition incorporates terms (ePHI and DRS) defined by the regulations (Rules) issued under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, as amended (generally referred herein as HIPAA). The definition of EHI, however, specifically excludes psychotherapy notes as defined in the HIPAA Rules and information compiled in anticipation of legal proceedings, which is consistent with the individual “right of access” standard in the HIPAA Rules. EHI relies on the electronic part of what the HIPAA Rules define as the DRS. The use of terms defined by the HIPAA Rules (“HIPAA-defined terms”) provides familiarity for the health care industry and consistency across regulations.
It’s important to note that certain health care providers subject to the information blocking regulations (and any other actor that supports them) may not be covered entities or business associates under the HIPAA Rules. These actors will need to familiarize themselves with the HIPAA-defined terms and assess what information they have that would be records that align with those included in the DRS (i.e., used for making decisions about individuals). However, most actors subject to the information blocking regulations are also covered entities or business associates under HIPAA. Given this relationship and to inform those actors not covered by HIPAA, we want to dive into how the EHI definition aligns with well-known HIPAA-defined terms….”
“There’s Time, but There’s No Need to Wait
As of April 5, 2021, the information blocking regulations are in effect and applicable to all actors. To give people time to adjust, the information blocking definition applies only to a subset of EHI—i.e., EHI represented by the data elements identified by the USCDI v1…” Read the full post here.
Source: Say Hi to EHI – By Kathryn Marchesini and Michael Lipinski – December 20, 2021. HealthITBuzz.
