HHS Office for Civil Rights Director Melanie Fontes Rainer on Progress and News at OCR
ERISA Blog | Changes to the HIPAA Privacy Rules A Primer for Self-Insured Group Health Plans
Podcast - Data Privacy and Tracking Technology Compliance
Patient Data and Privacy
HIPAA Tips With Williams Mullen - Telehealth After the Pandemic
Relaxed HIPAA Restrictions For Providers Using Telehealth
Webinar: Investigating and Resolving Sexual Assaults on Campus
Seyfarth Synopsis: Following years of back and forth, new final rules were published by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on May 6, 2024 reinstituting the Department’s interpretation that the prohibition on...more
In neighboring states last week, the federal courts issued two decisions affirming the rights of transgender students and athletes. In Connecticut, the Second Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of a...more
Recent court and OCR decisions regarding transgender students and employees reflect widely varying responses to the Biden administration’s efforts to expand protections for LGBTQ+ individuals under federal law, including...more
The 50th anniversary of Title IX provides elementary, secondary, and postsecondary institutions an opportunity to reflect on the impact of and future developments stemming from the law....more
On June 22, 2021, the United States Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”) and the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division (“DOJ) issued a joint Fact Sheet addressed to elementary and secondary...more
Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, or OCR, issued a Notice of Interpretation stating that Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits discrimination against LGBTQ+ students and...more
Yesterday, President Joe Biden issued an executive order addressing Title IX, entitled Executive Order on Guaranteeing an Educational Environment Free from Discrimination on the Basis of Sex, Including Sexual Orientation or...more
As discussed in a prior post, OCR under the former President went to great lengths to interpret Bostock v. Clayton (which established that discrimination against someone for being transgender or homosexual was sex...more
On January 20, 2021, President Joe Biden signed the "Executive Order on Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation.” The Executive Order explicitly extends the holding of...more
At the beginning of last week, Donald Trump was President of the United States and we were being flooded with last minute Title IX and civil rights guidance from the outgoing Department of Education. As we near the end of the...more
A local news source from New Haven, Connecticut, reported that the New Haven Public Schools and the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights have reached a tentative agreement on their current transgender...more
When the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion several weeks ago upholding a public school district’s policy allowing transgender students to use facilities that match their gender identity, it was just the latest...more
Healthcare employers take note: the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) has issued a proposed rule that, if passed, will allow healthcare workers who object to performing certain medical procedures like abortions...more
On February 22, 2017, the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice issued a letter withdrawing the statements of policy and guidance reflected in the May 13, 2016 Dear Colleague Letter on OCR's enforcement of Title IX with...more
Changing course on complaints involving transgender students, the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) recently issued new field instructions to its regional staff excluding discrimination claims based...more
Department of Education regional directors have been given new instructions on sex discrimination protections for transgender students under Title IX of the Education Act of 1972. Two updated, internal Office of Civil Rights...more
On February 22, 2017, the Department of Education and the Department of Justice ("Departments") withdrew statements of policy and guidance on transgender students and their use of school restrooms and locker rooms that were a...more
Timely Topics - The final rule implementing Section 1557 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) was issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) on May...more