The Florida Legislature just lately amended the Florida Digital Well being Information Alternate Act (the “Act”) to ban positive fitness care suppliers using qualified digital fitness file applied sciences from storing certified digital fitness information[1] outdoor of america, its territories, or Canada.[2] Considerably, the prohibition additionally extends to certified digital fitness information which can be saved via a third-party or subcontracted computing facility or cloud carrier supplier.[3]
In impact, qualifying fitness care suppliers would possibly not themselves retailer certified digital fitness information offshore, nor can they depend on third-party distributors who perform offshore. It’s also vital to emphasise that the concept that of garage extends to a get together’s skill to retrieve, get right of entry to, and even transmit certified digital fitness information.[4] This idea turns into a priority the place a 3rd get together contractor outdoor of america, its territories, or Canada, reminiscent of an IT give a boost to seller, digital fitness information platform, or knowledge access subcontractor, is in a position to get right of entry to certified digital fitness information which can be in a different way saved on servers inside america.
For functions of this offshore prohibition, a “fitness care supplier” contains positive qualifying:
- Well being care practitioners approved or approved beneath Florida legislation, reminiscent of physicians, doctor assistants, acupuncturists, chiropractors, podiatrists, naturopathic physicians, optometrists, nurses, pharmacists, dentists, speech pathologists, occupational therapists, nursing house directors, dieticians, athletic running shoes, therapeutic massage therapists, amongst others.
- Well being care amenities and connected carrier suppliers, reminiscent of hospitals, ambulatory surgical facilities, nursing properties, assisted residing amenities, pharmacies, house fitness companies, nurse registries, spouse products and services or homemaker products and services suppliers, grownup day care facilities, hospices, laboratories approved to accomplish checking out beneath the Drug-Loose Office Act, delivery facilities, abortion clinics, disaster stabilization gadgets, non permanent residential remedy amenities, residential remedy facilities for kids and young people, grownup family-care properties, transitional residing amenities, prescribed pediatric prolonged care facilities, house scientific apparatus suppliers, intermediate care amenities for individuals with construction disabilities, fitness care products and services swimming pools, fitness care clinics, organ, tissues, and eye procurement organizations, proceeding care amenities, amongst others.
- Authorized amenities and suppliers furnishing psychological fitness or substance abuse products and services, at the side of their respective scientific and non-clinical personnel who give a boost to inpatient and outpatient products and services.[5]
The Act is slated to take impact on July 1, 2023. Qualifying fitness care suppliers will have to assess the place digital affected person knowledge is saved, together with whether or not third-party distributors (reminiscent of IT give a boost to, scheduling give a boost to, and so forth.) outdoor of america or Canada have get right of entry to to the affected person knowledge. The place there’s a struggle, qualifying fitness care suppliers might wish to start transitioning affected person knowledge to new garage places or take steps to make certain that get right of entry to to affected person knowledge is correctly restricted previous to the Act’s efficient date.
If in case you have any questions on this contemporary law or its have an effect on for your group, please touch a member of the Sheppard Mullin Healthcare Workforce.
FOOTNOTES
[1] Fla. Stat. § 408.051(3). For functions of the Act, a “certified digital fitness file” contains “an digital file of health-related knowledge relating to a person which contains affected person demographic and scientific fitness knowledge, reminiscent of scientific historical past and drawback lists, and which has the capability to supply scientific choice give a boost to, to give a boost to doctor order access, to seize and question knowledge related to fitness care high quality, and to replace digital fitness knowledge with, and combine such knowledge from, different resources.” Fla. Stat. § 408.051(2).
[2] Fla. Stat. § 408.051(3).
[3] Fla. Stat. § 408.051(3).
[4] Fla. Stat. § 408.051(3).
[5] Fla. Stat. § 408.051(2).
