Mel Soliz Joins Zen Healthcare IT to Discuss Best Practices for IAS Implementation Under TEFCA

In a collaborative session hosted by Zen Healthcare IT, Partner Mel Soliz outlined essential best practices for implementing Individual Access Services (IAS) within the parameters of the Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement (TEFCA). In the presentation, “IAS Under TEFCA: What Vendors, Providers and HIEs Need to Know,” Mel unpacked the real-world implications behind TEFCA policy. Mel highlighted common pitfalls that could derail TEFCA implementation while offering guidance on navigating emerging requirements related to consent, data segmentation, and sustainability. Mel also shared often-overlooked compliance implications. Mel’s regulatory practice focuses on compliance with data privacy, access, and interoperability laws, health IT/technology service contracting, and HIN/HIEs. She regularly speaks in local and national forums on these topics and has been active in state and federal policymaking on data privacy...

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Mel Soliz & Amita Sanghvi Train Local Behavioral Health Advocates in Navigating Patient Confidentiality

During the Eric Gilberston Advocacy Institute for Behavioral Health’s annual training program, Mel Soliz and Amita Sanghvi guided case managers and other community members interested in mental health advocacy through the nuances of sharing health information with loved ones involved in patient care. Mel’s regulatory practice focuses on compliance with data privacy, access, and interoperability laws (such as the Information Blocking Rule and CMS interoperability mandates as well as state mini-interoperability laws), health IT/technology service contracting, and HIN/HIEs (including national and state interoperability frameworks such as TEFCA, Carequality, CommonWell, DURSA, DxF, and SCPA). She regularly speaks in local and national forums on these topics and has been active in state and federal policymaking on data privacy and HIE issues. Amita advises on HIPAA compliance, privacy, cybersecurity, and...

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Amita Sanghvi Examines Federal Court Decision Vacating HIPAA Reproductive Health Privacy Regulations

A federal court’s ruling to overturn the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services’ (HHS) HIPAA reproductive health privacy protections has left many organizations uncertain over future compliance and patient data obligations. In response, Coppersmith Brockelman attorney and longtime Senior Attorney with the HHS Office of General Counsel Amita Sanghvi authored an article for the Arizona Society for Healthcare Attorneys (AzSHA) breaking down this ruling and its implications for regulated entities. The court’s decision in Purl v. HHS, N.D. Tex., 2:24-CV-228-Z, vacated the “HIPAA Privacy Rule to Support Reproductive Health Care Privacy,” (the 2024 Rule) that would have expanded restrictions on disclosing protected health information related to reproductive health care. While HHS did not appeal the ruling, a group of proposed intervenors did. Meanwhile, HHS continued...

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Amita Sanghvi & Kristen Rosati Explain What Reproductive Privacy Ruling Means for Covered Entities

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas recently issued a nationwide injunction, vacating a federal rule that strengthened HIPAA privacy protections for reproductive health care information. While the decision eases compliance burdens for covered entities, it also removes the legal shelter the rule had provided around disclosures of sensitive reproductive health care data. In the latest Coppersmith Brief, “Federal Judge Vacates HIPAA Reproductive Health Care Privacy Rule," Amita Sanghvi and Kristen Rosati break down the court’s reasoning and explore the implications for HIPAA-covered organizations moving forward. Advising clients on health data privacy, cybersecurity, and digital health innovation, Amita served as a senior attorney at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) before returning to private practice. During her time at HHS, she...

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Mel Soliz Outlines Best Practices for Legal Advisors Supporting Health Care Organizations with AI Implementation

As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly integrated into health care, those legally advising the adoption of this new tool must be prepared to navigate the rapidly changing and complex regulatory landscape. During a recent presentation to the Arizona Society of Healthcare Attorneys (AzSHA), Partner Mel Soliz detailed the legal issues and implementation best practices attorneys should follow when advising health care organizations on the use of common AI solutions, such as AI scribes and AI-powered clinical decision support and medical utilization/prior authorization software. A nationally recognized attorney in health data privacy and interoperability, Mel works with organizations to design, build, implement, and use artificial intelligence solutions. Learn more about Mel Soliz....

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Kristen Rosati Shares Insight on Rising Threats of Ransomware Mailed Physically to Health Care Organizations

A recent string of mailed extortion demands has caught health care organizations off guard, signaling a shift in ransomware tactics. Partner Kristen Rosati was featured in a Healthcare Risk Management article, emphasizing the importance for health care organizations to prepare for these emerging threats. The paper ransomware letters claimed sensitive data had been stolen and demanded more than $250,000 in Bitcoin within 10 days. Although an increasing number of health care staff now receive training to avoid suspicious links and spot phishing emails, physical letters tend to feel more legitimate and urgent than these digital phishing tactics. This method also bypasses the expensive email filters and security systems set up to catch digital threats, making it even more difficult to detect. “Snail mail doesn’t leave a digital...

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