The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) launched an action to deal with healthcare organizations that take part in information blocking. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. instructed the HHS to add more resources on the implementation of the 21st Century Cures Act’s health data information blocking provision. The 21st Century Cures Act of 2016 specified penalties, called disincentives, for healthcare entities that get involved in information blocking practices. Information blocking refers to “any practice that interferes with, prevents, or materially discourages access, exchange, or use of electronic health information.”
Developers of certified health IT, Health Information Networks (HINs), and Health Information Exchanges (HIEs) that engage in information blocking will be issued a disincentive, which is up to $1 million in civil monetary penalty. The effectivity of this provision began on September 1, 2023. HHS can terminate the certifications of products under the ONC Health IT Certification Program and be blocked from the Certification Program.
In 2023, the HHS proposed a rule to impose a range of disincentives for healthcare entities confirmed by the HHS Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) to have practiced information blocking. The disincentives were implemented starting on July 31, 2024, except for the penalties on ACO participants, which started to take effect on January 1, 2025.
The disincentives are described below:
Hospitals or critical access hospitals (CAHs) will be denied eligibility as meaningful electronic health record (EHR) users in a pertinent EHR reporting period, which results in the loss of 75% of the yearly market basket increase, and a decline in Medicare payments to CAHs to 100% of reasonable costs instead of 101%. The disincentive amount will depend on the Medicare payments of the hospital. HHS formerly computed a median disincentive amount of $394,353.
Eligible clinicians who practice information blocking will lose their certification as meaningful users of certified EHR technology for a specified period, resulting in a zero score for Medicare’s Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) payments to doctors.
Providers or vendors that are members of the Accountable Care Organization (ACO) would not be eligible to join the Medicare Shared Savings Program for a minimum of one year.
A press release on September 3, 2025 indicated that HHS will be taking serious action on information blocking, wherein patients’ care is limited because of the blocking of access, exchange, and use of ePHI. The HHS stated information blocking wasn’t prioritized by the Biden administration; however, it is one of President Trump and Secretary Kennedy’s priorities.
Patients should have unblocked access to their protected health information as confirmed by legislation. It is the legal duty of providers and certain health IT entities to ensure that information is accessible where and when it’s necessary. HHS-OIG will use all its authorities to investigate and penalize violators to honor its commitment to enforce the law and protect patients’ access to health data.
Giving individuals the ability to control their health data is a crucial element in the Make America Healthy Again promise by Secretary Kennedy. It means individuals should have quick access to their electronic health information, whether through zero-cost access from their healthcare companies or their selected health applications. Access to health data enables patients to keep track of their chronic medical conditions, follow treatment plans, monitor progress in wellness and disease management plans, and discover flaws in their health records.
Dr. Tom Keane, Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy and National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, stated that they have started reviewing information blocking reports on developers of health IT certified under the ONC Health IT Certification Program. The HHS is urging patients who have encountered or noticed information blocking to file a report via the ASTP/ONC Report Information Blocking Portal.