HIPAA Privacy Rule’s Protections for Reproductive Health Information Ruled Unconstitutional

On June 18, in Purl v. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas vacated the 2024 HIPAA Privacy Rule to Support Reproductive Health Care Privacy (“New HIPAA Rule”). The New HIPAA Rule, which amended the HIPAA privacy regulations, imposes additional restrictions on the disclosure of a person’s reproductive health information for criminal and civil investigations and prosecutions. The Purl decision did not, however, affect the New HIPAA Rule’s amendments to the HIPAA privacy regulations regarding certain Notice of Privacy Practices provisions pertaining to substance use disorder (SUD) regulations.