EXPERTS EXPLAIN ILLINOIS COURT CASE THAT ROCKED HIPAA DE-IDENTIFICATION EFFORTSAlexandria, VA – June 23, 2004 -- An Illinois court ruled that although an expert could re-identify records from the state’s cancer registry, it was still hard to do and the state should release the records. The June 9 decision in The Southern Illinoisan v. Department of Health has roiled policymakers, researchers and data managers. Why? Organizations can escape some HIPAA privacy
requirements if they de-identify records. This decision raises new questions
over what that means. To dispel the
confusion, Health Information Privacy/Security Alert is sponsoring Practical Strategies for De-Identifying
Patient Data for Research and E-Health Records. The July 13 audio
seminar features Dr. Latanya Sweeney, Ph.D., who the court
acknowledged as a unique expert in the field. Dr Sweeney will discuss
practical aspects in creating data de-identification programs.In addition to
being a recognized expert, Dr. Sweeney is Assistant Professor of Computer
Science, Technology and Policy at Carnegie Mellon University, where she
directs the Laboratory for International Data Privacy. De-identification
will become more important as the White House fosters e-health records. All
organizations will have an incentive to use de-identified data whenever
possible to reduce the risk of accidental or malicious releases of sensitive
information. The
seminar also features: Judith E. Beach, Ph.D., Esq., Vice President and
Chief Privacy Officer for Quintiles Transnational Corp., which created
one of the nation’s most successful data de-identification programs; and
Dennis Melamed, editor of Health Information Privacy/Security Alert. PARTICIPANTS WILL LEARN:
And more |