The Biden administration has finalized a new rule that shields women’s medical records from criminal investigations if they cross state lines to seek an abortion where it is legal.
The regulation is intended to protect women who live in states where abortion is illegal from prosecution. However, it is likely to face legal challenges from anti-abortion advocates and criticism from abortion-rights advocates that it does not go far enough.
The new regulation is an update to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), which prohibits medical providers and health insurers from divulging medical information about patients. Typically, however, law enforcement can access those records for investigations.
In states with strict abortion rules, the federal regulation would essentially prohibit state or local officials from gathering medical records related to reproductive health care for a civil, criminal, or administrative investigation in a state where abortion remains legal.
In theory, it will provide the most cover to women who leave states with strict bans to seek an abortion from a medical provider in a state that allows it.
The new regulation would not protect a woman who orders an abortion pill from her home in a state like Mississippi, where abortion is mostly banned, from a provider in Illinois, where it is legal.
The nation’s top health official acknowledged Monday that the regulation has limitations and may be challenged legally.
“Until we have a national law that reinstates Roe v. Wade, we’re going to have issues,” Xavier Becerra said. “But that doesn’t stop us from doing everything we can to protect every Americans’ right to access the care they need.”
