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New state data privacy laws focus on consumer health data

In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, Nevada and Washington¹ State have enacted legislation that extends privacy safeguards to an emerging category of personal data known as “Consumer Health Data.” Requirements go beyond the purview of Protected Health Information (“PHI”) already governed by the U.S. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act² (“HIPAA”). These new laws come in the wake of increasing enforcement actions brought by the Federal Trade Commission under HIPAA, perhaps signal a renewed broad regulatory focus on healthcare personal data.

Organizations interacting with consumers in these states need to evaluate their personal data management capabilities to validate they can comply with the expanded requirements and increased oversight. Failure to act now can expose the organization to lawsuits from private individuals, fines, and reputational damage.

Explore our slipsheet that covers:

• Comparing the requirements across the states
• Capabilities for addressing compliance requirements
• Updating existing capabilities to bring your organization into compliance
• Next steps to uplevel your privacy management capabilities

How KPMG can help

Our privacy and healthcare compliance practices offer a deep bench of technologists, security professionals, former regulators and attorneys. We have successfully helped hundreds of organizations break down the complex data privacy and healthcare regulatory environment to develop risk-based, flexible and proven capabilities for achieving compliance.

In the face of evolving data privacy regulations, it is imperative for organizations to adapt swiftly.

By harnessing existing capabilities, developing new processes, and collaborating with KPMG, organizations can maintain consumer trust in an era of heightened health data privacy scrutiny.

1  Source: “Washington becomes first state to adopt health data protections post-Roe,” Cat Zakrzewski, The Washington Post (April 27, 2023).

2  Source:  “Washington state on track to pass board-based health data privacy law,” Jennifer Bryant, International Association of Privacy Professionals (April 12, 2023).