The Illinois Governor recently signed SB 2886, which expands the scope of the state’s Genetic Information Privacy Act (“GIPA”) to include “biomarker testing” and “biomarker.” GIPA currently regulates the collection, use, and disclosure of genetic testing information.
The bill defines “biomarker” as “a characteristic that is objectively measured and
Continue Reading Illinois Expands Genetic Privacy Law to BiomarkersThe Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) has released its 2026 Unified Agenda, which identifies regulatory actions that federal agencies expect to propose or finalize during the remainder of the year. Below, we highlight several notable health privacy, interoperability, and data exchange rules that the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) has listed for proposed or final action in 2026. The descriptions and target dates below reflect only the agency’s stated intentions and are subject to change.
Continue Reading OMB Publishes 2026 Unified Agenda Signaling Upcoming Health Privacy and Interoperability Updates from HHSIn what continues to be a busy year for genetic privacy developments, Rhode Island has joined the growing number of states regulating direct-to-consumer (“DTC”) genetic testing with its recently enacted genetic privacy law, S 2203. With S 2203, Rhode Island is the fifth state to enact genetic privacy legislation this year, following Utah, South Dakota, Connecticut, and Vermont.
Continue Reading Rhode Island Enacts Genetic Privacy LawVermont recently enacted two privacy bills to regulate health-related information. These include H.639, a genetic privacy bill regulating direct-to-consumer genetic testing companies, and the Vermont Data Privacy and Online Surveillance Act (S.71), a comprehensive privacy law that extends heightened protections to “consumer health data.” You can read our full
Continue Reading Vermont Enacts Privacy Legislation to Regulate Health-Related InformationStates continue to enact laws regulating genetic data. Since our last update, the Connecticut governor has signed SB 4, an omnibus privacy law which contains provisions regulating direct-to-consumer (“DTC”) genetic testing companies. You can read our full analysis of SB 4 here.
Continue Reading Connecticut Enacts Genetic Privacy LawAt the state level, genetic privacy remains a fast-moving topic, and states continue to introduce and advance bills regulating genetic data.
Continue Reading Utah and South Dakota Enact Genetic Privacy Laws as Other States Advance BillsFollowing a trend from the past few years, several states have introduced bills related to genetic privacy in recent months. These bills have focused on a range of issues, including the privacy practices of direct-to-consumer (“DTC”) genetic testing companies, the national security implications of “foreign adversaries” accessing genetic information, and other topics related to genetic privacy and testing. We summarize a subset of such recently introduced bills below.
Continue Reading Several States Introduce New Genetic Privacy Bills in Early 2026On December 19, 2025, New York Governor Kathy Hochul vetoed the New York Health Information Privacy Act (“NYHIPA”). While NYHIPA bore similarities to Washington’s My Health My Data Act (“MHMD”) and Nevada’s Health Privacy Law (“SB 370”), it had several provisions that would have raised novel compliance and legal questions.
Continue Reading New York Governor Vetoes Restrictive Health Privacy LawOn November 4, 2025, Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (“HELP”) Committee, introduced the Health Information Privacy Reform Act (“HIPRA”). HIPRA seeks to extend protections similar to those provided under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, as amended, and its implementing regulations (collectively, “HIPAA”) to certain health information collected by entities not currently regulated by HIPAA. HIPRA also proposes modifications and calls for guidance related to certain existing provisions of HIPAA as well as Part 2 (related to substance use disorder medical history).
Continue Reading U.S. Senate Introduces the Health Information Privacy Reform ActIn late September, plaintiffs announced details regarding Google LLC’s (“Google”) and women’s health app developer, Flo Health Inc.’s (“Flo”) proposed settlements to resolve a class action lawsuit stemming from the Flo app’s allegedly unlawful sharing of health data with Google and others through online tracking technologies.
As part of the proposed settlements, Google agreed to pay $48 million and Flo agreed to pay $8 million, for a combined $56 million to resolve plaintiffs’ claims against these two entities.
Continue Reading Flo Health, Google Settle Class Action Privacy Lawsuit for $56 Million