Kennedy calls for wider access to US health data

At a Monday MAHA Institute event, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called for health data to be linked and made more accessible to researchers. He said the information could help study chronic diseases and questions about vaccines and autism.

Kennedy said records could include immunization, clinical, laboratory, pharmacy and insurance claims data from state health information exchanges, electronic health records, Medicare, Medicaid and commercial platforms. STAT reported that using these records for research raises privacy, ethical and legal concerns. Some health data is shared under agreements that limit its use, and patients normally have to consent to research use, according to STAT.

Kennedy said the administration wants to make data available to external researchers. The Guardian reported that he said the government is already using linked data in studies, including research on vaccination during pregnancy and later childhood outcomes.