What changed between these versions
A minor refinement. v2 adds an alternative short title, "Health DATA Act of 2026," and updates specific cross-references to civil enforcement penalties within the indemnification prohibition section. The bill's substantive policy provisions regarding health data access for group health plans remain unchanged.
Overview
A couple of minor changes were made to the bill. · v2 clarifies and refines the bill without altering its core policy direction or expanding its scope.
The primary change in v2 is the addition of an alternative short title, "Health DATA Act of 2026," alongside the original title. Additionally, v2 updates specific cross-references to civil enforcement penalties in the section prohibiting indemnification of service providers, ensuring greater accuracy in the statutory text. All other substantive provisions related to increasing group health plan access to health data remain identical to v1.
Modifications
This modification provides an additional, shorter name for the Act, which may aid in its common reference and legislative tracking. It does not alter the substance or operative provisions of the bill, but rather offers a more concise identifier.
Before
The Act was cited solely as the "Health Data Access, Transparency, and Affordability Act of 2026".
After
The Act can now be cited as the "Health Data Access, Transparency, and Affordability Act of 2026" or the "Health DATA Act of 2026".
This change clarifies which specific civil enforcement penalties are subject to the indemnification prohibition. It removes references to 502(a)(15) and 727(d), and corrects the subsection reference for 502(13) and 502(14) from (a) to (c), ensuring accuracy in the statutory text. This primarily affects the legal interpretation of the scope of indemnification prohibition for service providers, aligning it precisely with other penalty provisions.
Before
The provision prohibited indemnification for civil enforcement penalties under "section 502(a)(13), 502(a)(14), 502(a)(15) or section 727(d)".
After
The provision prohibits indemnification for civil enforcement penalties under "section 502(c)(13) or 502(c)(14)".
Scope
Minor adjustment within existing scope — Changes are highly concentrated in the short title and a single sub-paragraph within the ERISA amendments. — No meaningful change in policy direction. The changes are technical and administrative in nature, primarily focused on clarifying existing text. — The change in cross-references in Section 410(a)(2) directly interacts with the civil enforcement penalty provisions of ERISA, ensuring the indemnification prohibition accurately targets the intended penalties without altering their substance.
Impact analysis
Legislative and Public Referencers of the Bill
Procedural/Clarifying
Gained an alternative, shorter name for the Act, making it potentially easier to reference and recall.
Network Service Providers subject to ERISA civil penalties
Clarifying
The specific civil enforcement penalties for which indemnification is prohibited are clarified and narrowed to "section 502(c)(13) or 502(c)(14)".