The article reports that the Office of Personnel Management issued a December notice seeking to obtain personally identifiable medical and pharmaceutical claims information for federal employees, retirees, and their family members enrolled in Federal Employees Health Benefits or Postal Service Health Benefits plans. The data would come from about eight million plan members across 65 insurers, including prescriptions, diagnoses, and treatments.
OPM would receive monthly reports containing protected health information to support agency oversight, a process that raises concerns about privacy protections and purposes under federal health privacy laws. Observers note potential benefits, such as improved oversight of the nation’s largest employer-sponsored health program, but ethicists warn the expanded access could enable disciplinary action or targeting of workers deemed noncompliant politically.
Insurers have challenged the plan, with some arguing it would violate laws governing disclosure of health information; CVS Health publicly contended that sharing data for vaguer purposes would be unlawful. The proposal had not yet been finalized at the time of reporting, and OPM did not provide comment when contacted.
Access to Personal Medical Data by a Federal Agency: Context, Proposals, and Uncertainties
While some commentaries acknowledge potential benefits for system improvement and oversight, others express significant concerns about motive and risk.