The Joint Commission has launched the Responsible Use of Health Data (RUHD) Certification program for healthcare organizations. Although the program is voluntary, it is aimed at providing hospitals, patients, and key stakeholders “with an objective evaluation of how well a hospital is maintaining health data privacy best practices transferring data to third parties.” The certification program is based on principles developed by the Health Evolution Forum.
The certification framework will evaluate many different factors for those who choose to partake in the program, including whether an organization is de-identifying data based on HIPAA, the governance structure of the use of the de-identified data, and the ways the organization communicates with stakeholders about the secondary use of this data. This is accomplished through checks on algorithm validation, data controls, and data use limitations.
The RUHD Certification program will become available to qualifying organizations on January 1, 2024. US hospitals and critical access hospitals will be recognized publicly by the Joint Commission for completing the certification.