On December 16, 2014, President Obama signed into law an omnibus spending bill that will provide funding across the federal government in the remainder of FY 2015. The bill includes $5.4 billion designated for several regulatory agencies - including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Defense, Food and Drug Administration, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health and Department of State - to use in response to the Ebola epidemic, on both a national and international scale.… Continue Reading
On February 6, 2014, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services' (HHS) Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Office for Civil Rights jointly published a final rule amending the HIPAA Privacy Rule and the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 regulations to provide patients with direct access to laboratory test reports. HHS believes that patients should have the right to access these test reports in order to gain vital information, allowing them to better manage their health and take action to prevent and control disease. The amendments to both regulations become effective April 7, 2014, and HIPAA-covered laboratories must comply by October 6, 2014.… Continue Reading
This post was written by Antony B. Klapper and Jesse J. Ash. On April, 8, 2009, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (“NIOSH”) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”) submitted a notice for public comment in the Federal Register, requesting information to evaluate potential health risks associated with the use … Continue Reading
