WASHINGTON – Members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce proposed a bill last week to help doctors pay for healthcare IT and improve patient privacy protection.

The bill, currently called "a discussion draft," was introduced by leaders of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and its Subcommittee on Health and would amend the Public Health Service Act. It would also provide a roadmap for the federal government's role in healthcare IT adoption and clarify and strengthen patient privacy protections.

The proposal would provide financial aid to small group practices, particularly those in rural or medically underserved areas, for acquiring healthcare IT. It would also allow federal subsidies for low-interest private loans to allow states and tribes to purchase healthcare IT. The federal government would also provide support for regional health information exchange organizations under the proposal.

The bill would close a loophole that allows disclosure of protected health information for "treatment alternatives" that have been used without patient consent for marketing purposes in the past.

It would also require personal health record (PHR) vendors, such as Google and Microsoft, to notify customers if their PHRs have been breached and designate the Federal Trade Commission as an interim authority over security enforcement. In addition, the bill would require the Department of Health and Human Services to issue guidance on the de-identification of protected health information.