Creates the public health data privacy and protection act to regulate the reporting of information relating to reportable disease data in the possession of the department of health.

Plain-English Summary: RI Public Health Data Privacy and Protection Act

This bill would create a new set of rules in Rhode Island governing how the state Department of Health handles and shares personal health information related to reportable diseases. "Reportable diseases" are conditions — like tuberculosis, certain infections, or other public health concerns — that doctors and healthcare providers are legally required to report to the government. The bill aims to establish clear privacy protections for the personal data collected as part of that reporting process.

The legislation would affect a wide range of people and organizations. Rhode Island residents whose health information is reported to the Department of Health would gain new protections over how their data is used and shared. Healthcare providers, laboratories, and public health officials would need to follow the new rules when collecting and transmitting that information. The bill essentially sets boundaries around what the Department of Health can do with sensitive disease-related data once it receives it.

The specific details of those protections — such as who can access the data, under what circumstances it can be shared, and what penalties might apply for misuse — would be spelled out in the full text of the legislation. The goal, as stated in the bill's title, is to balance the government's need to track and respond to public health threats with individuals' right to privacy over their personal medical information.

Currently, the bill has been introduced and referred to the House Health & Human Services Committee, where it has been scheduled for a hearing and recommended for further study. It has not yet been passed into law.