U.S. Surgeon General Issues Advisory During COVID-19 Vaccination Push Warning American Public About Threat of Health Misinformation

"U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy is issuing the first Surgeon General's Advisory of this Administration to warn the American public about the urgent threat of health misinformation. Health misinformation, including disinformation, have threatened the U.S. response to COVID-19 and continue to prevent Americans from getting vaccinated, prolonging the pandemic and putting lives at risk, and the advisory encourages technology and social media companies to take more responsibility to stop online spread of health misinformation.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Americans have been exposed to a wide range of misinformation about masks and social distancing, treatments, and vaccines. As of late May, 67% of unvaccinated adults  had heard at least one COVID-19 vaccine myth and either believed it to be true or were not sure of its veracity. Health misinformation has already caused significant harm , dividing families and communities and undermining vaccination efforts. An analysis of millions of social media posts  found that false news stories were 70 percent more likely to be shared than true stories. And a recent study  showed that even brief exposure to misinformation made people less likely to want a COVID-19 vaccine.

"Health misinformation is an urgent threat to public health. It can cause confusion, sow mistrust, and undermine public health efforts, including our ongoing work to end the COVID-19 pandemic," said U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy. "As Surgeon General, my job is to help people stay safe and healthy, and without limiting the spread of health misinformation, American lives are at risk. From the tech and social media companies who must do more to address the spread on their platforms, to all of us identifying and avoiding sharing misinformation, tackling this challenge will require an all-of-society approach, but it is critical for the long-term health of our nation."

Health misinformation is information that is false, inaccurate, or misleading according to the best available evidence. It is not a recent phenomenon, and persistent rumors about HIV/AIDS for decades have undermined efforts to reduce infection rates in the U.S. During the Ebola epidemic, misinformation spread rapidly on social media. A 2014 study - PDF  found that Ebola-related tweets that contained misinformation were more likely to be politically charged and have content promoting discord.

This advisory lays out how the nation can confront health misinformation by helping individuals, families, and communities better identify and limit its spread, and issues a number of ways institutions in education, media, medicine, research, and government stakeholders can approach this issue. It also underscores the urgent need for technology and social media companies to address the way misinformation and disinformation spread on their platforms, threatening people's health..."
Health Misinformation 

EEOC Issues Final Rules on Employer Wellness Programs

"The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today issued final rules that describe how Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) apply to wellness programs offered by employers that request health information from employees and their spouses. The two rules provide guidance to both employers and employees about how workplace wellness programs can comply with the ADA and GINA consistent with provisions governing wellness programs in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, as amended by the Affordable Care Act (Affordable Care Act)..."
Employer wellness program

Leading Health Indicators

"Healthy People 2020 provides a comprehensive set of 10-year, national goals and objectives for improving the health of all Americans. Healthy People 2020 contains 42 topic areas with nearly 600 objectives (with others still evolving), which encompass 1,200 measures. A smaller set of Healthy People 2020 objectives, called Leading Health Indicators, has been selected to communicate high-priority health issues and actions that can be taken to address them..."

Health Communicator's Social Media Toolkit
Access health resources at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention using its' Health Communicator's Social Media Toolkit.

HHS Strengthens Health Information Privacy and Security through New Rules
"HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced important new rules and resources to strengthen the privacy of health information and to help all Americans understand their rights and the resources available to safeguard their personal health data. Led by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) and the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR), HHS is working with public and private partners to ensure that, as we expand the use of health information technology to drive improvements in the quality and effectiveness of our nation’s health care system, Americans can trust that their health information is protected and secure.

“To improve the health of individuals and communities, health information must be available to those making critical decisions, including individuals and their caregivers,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “While health information technology will help America move its health care system forward, the privacy and security of personal health data is at the core of all our work.”

Through the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act, enacted as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, current health information privacy and security rules will now include broader individual rights and stronger protections when third parties handle individually identifiable health information.

The proposed rule announced today would strengthen and expand enforcement of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Privacy, Security, and Enforcement Rules by:

expanding individuals’ rights to access their information and to restrict certain types of disclosures of protected health information to health plans.
requiring business associates of HIPAA-covered entities to be under most of the same rules as the covered entities;
setting new limitations on the use and disclosure of protected health information for marketing and fundraising; and
prohibiting the sale of protected health information without patient authorization..."

HHS Launches New Consumer Focused Health Care Website www.HealthCare.gov
"The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services today unveiled an innovative new on-line tool that will help consumers take control of their health care by connecting them to new information and resources that will help them access quality, affordable health care coverage. Called for by the Affordable Care Act, HealthCare.gov is the first website to provide consumers with both public and private health coverage options tailored specifically for their needs in a single, easy-to-use tool.

“HealthCare.gov helps consumers take control of their health care and make the choices that are right for them, by putting the power of information at their fingertips,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “For too long, the insurance market has been confusing and hard to navigate. HealthCare.gov makes it easy for consumers and small businesses to compare health insurance plans in both the public and the private sector and find other important health care information.”

HealthCare.gov is the first central database of health coverage options, combining information about public programs, from Medicare to the new Pre-Existing Conditions Insurance Plan, with information from more than 1,000 private insurance plans. Consumers can receive information about options specific to their life situation and local community..."

HHS Releases Guidance for Securing Health Information and Preventing Harm from Breaches
"...The guidance issued today provides steps entities can take to secure personal health information and establishes the trigger for when entities must notify that patient data has been compromised. This guidance is related to “breach notification” regulations, which will be issued by HHS and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) respectively. The HHS regulations will apply to entities covered by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and the FTC regulation will apply to vendors of personal health records and certain others not covered by HIPAA. The Recovery Act requires that these regulations be published within 180 days of enactment."

Who Cares: Sources of Information about Health Care Products and Services
"With so many sources of health information at your fingertips — many of them online — it can be tough to tell fact from fiction, or useful health products and services from those that don’t work or aren’t safe.

The FTC has created this website to help you find reliable sources of information on health topics important to you, whether you’re an older consumer or a family member, caregiver, or friend. You can:

* find links to agencies and organizations that care about topics like generic drugs, hormone therapy, caregiving, surgery to improve vision, alternative medicine, hearing aids, Medicare fraud, and medical ID theft;
* learn how to spot misleading and deceptive claims; and
* find out who you can contact to ask questions, enlist help, or speak up if you think a health product or service isn’t living up to its promises.

Just remember: Among the best sources of health information is someone you can meet face-to-face. Talk about all of your health-related decisions with your doctors and other trusted health care providers."

Quick Information for Your Health
"The following titles represent easy-to-read health information available in both English and Spanish. Some titles are available as printable PDFs and as printed brochures for ordering."