House Passes Bill To Inform Users Of HealthCare.gov Breaches

A bill that would require swift notification for HealthCare.gov users whose personal information is compromised by hackers won bipartisan House passage Jan. 10, despite opposition from the White House.

The Health Exchange Security and Transparency Act, introduced by Rep. Joe Pitts (R-Pa.), chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee's Health Subcommittee, would require notification by the Department of Health and Human Services within two business days of any breach.

Sixty-seven House Democrats backed the measure, which passed 291-122. However, it was something of a free vote because the Senate is unlikely to consider the bill.

Democratic opponents argued that the legislation is unnecessary. "There have been no successful security breaches of HealthCare.gov," said Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.). "Nobody's personal information has been maliciously hacked." He suggested that the intent of the bill was to scare people away from using HealthCare.gov.