President Joe Biden's administration issued a final rule on Monday aimed at strengthening privacy protections for women seeking abortions by banning the disclosure of protected health information related to reproductive health.
The new rule, opens new tab, issued through the Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, strengthens existing provisions under the Health Insurance Portability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) privacy rule.
It is aimed at protecting women living in states where abortion is illegal who travel out of state to have the procedure done - something thousands of women are already doing, research shows.
The rule also protects healthcare providers, insurers, or other entities which perform or pay for abortions.
"Each and every American still has a right to their privacy, especially when it comes to their very private, very personal health information," Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra said at a news conference announcing the rule.
