[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 16 (Tuesday, January 25, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4452-4454]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-33014]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention


Privacy Act of 1974; Report of Modified or Altered System of 
Records

AGENCY: National Center for Infectious Diseases (NCID), Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Department of Health and Human 
Services (DHHS).

ACTION: Notification of Proposed Altered System of Records.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Health and Human Services proposes to alter 
System of Records, 09-20-0113, ``Epidemic Investigation Case Records, 
HHS/CDC/NCID.'' HHS is proposing to add the following Breach Response 
Routine Use Language to comply with the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) Memoranda (M) 07-16, Safeguarding Against and responding to the 
Breach of Personally Identifiable Information:
    To appropriate federal agencies and Department contractors that 
have a need to know the information for the purpose of assisting the 
Department's efforts to respond to a suspected or confirmed breach of 
the security or confidentiality of information disclosed is relevant 
and necessary for that assistance.
    These records will be maintained by the National Center for 
Infectious Diseases (NCID).

DATES: Comments must be received on or before February 24, 2011. The 
proposed altered System of Records will be effective 40 days from the 
date submitted to the OMB, unless NCID receives comments that would 
result in a contrary determination.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by the Privacy Act 
System of Record Number 09-20-0113:
    <bullet> Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://regulations.gov. Follow 
the instructions for submitting comments.

[[Page 4453]]

    <bullet> E-mail: Include PA SOR number 09-20-0113 in the subject 
line of the message.
    <bullet> Phone: 770/488-8660 (not a toll-free number).
    <bullet> Fax: 770/488-8659.
    <bullet> Mail: HHS/CDC Senior Official for Privacy (SOP), Office of 
the Chief Information Security Officer (OCISO), 4770 Buford Highway--M/
S: F-35, Chamblee, GA 30341.
    <bullet> Hand Delivery/Courier: HHS/CDC Senior Official for Privacy 
(SOP), Office of the Chief Information Security Officer (OCISO), 4770 
Buford Highway--M/S: F-35, Chamblee, GA 30341.
    <bullet> Comments received will be available for inspection and 
copying at this same address from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, Federal holidays excepted.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NCID proposes to alter System of Records, 
No. 09-20-0113, ``Epidemic Investigation Case Records, HHS/CDC/NCID.'' 
The record system is used by professional staff at the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for more complete knowledge of the 
disease/condition in the following ways: (1) An examination of existing 
files enables investigators to determine areas that have been 
adequately investigated and to specify those that might be pursued; or 
(2) records may later be examined in the light of future discoveries 
and proven associations so that relevant data collected at the time of 
the outbreak may be analyzed and reassessed. CDC may or may not request 
duplicate copies of these State and/or local health department records 
for further analysis following completion of the field investigation.
    This System of Record Notice is being altered to add the Breach 
Response Routine Use Language to comply with the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) memorandum dated May 22, 2007.
    The following notice is written in the present tense, rather than 
the future tense, in order to avoid the unnecessary expenditure of 
public funds to republish the notice after the System has become 
effective.

    Dated: December 11, 2009.
James D. Seligman,
Chief Information Officer, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

    Editorial Note:  This document was received at the Office of the 
Federal Register on December 27, 2010.

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

National Center for Infectious Diseases (NCID)

Epidemic Investigation Case Records--Report of Modified or Altered 
System of Records

Narrative Statement

I. Background and Purpose of the System

A. Background

    The Department of Health and Human Services proposes to alter 
System of Records, No. 09-20-0113 ``Epidemic Investigation Case 
Records, HHS/CDC/NCID.'' HHS is proposing to add the following Breach 
Response Routine Use Language to comply with the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) Memoranda (M) 07-16, Safeguarding Against and 
responding to the Breach of Personally Identifiable Information:
    To appropriate Federal agencies and Department contractors that 
have a need to know the information for the purpose of assisting the 
Department's efforts to respond to a suspected or confirmed breach of 
the security or confidentiality of information disclosed is relevant 
and necessary for that assistance.

B. Purpose

    The record system is used by professional staff at the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for more complete knowledge of the 
disease/condition in the following ways: (1) An examination of existing 
files enables investigators to determine areas that have been 
adequately investigated and to specify those that might be pursued; or 
(2) Records may later be examined in the light of future discoveries 
and proven associations so that relevant data collected at the time of 
the outbreak may be analyzed and reassessed. CDC may or may not request 
duplicate copies of these State and/or local health department records 
for further analysis following completion of the field investigation.

II. Authority for Maintenance of the System

    Public Health Service Act, Section 301, ``Research and 
Investigation,'' (42 U.S.C. 241); Sections 304, 306, and 308(d), which 
discuss authority to maintain data and to provide assurances of 
confidentiality for health research and related activities (42 U.S.C. 
242b, 242k, and 242m(d)); and Section 361, ``Quarantine and Inspection, 
Control of Communicable Diseases,'' (42 U.S.C. 264).

III. Proposed Routine Use Disclosures of Data in the System

    The Privacy Act allows us to disclose information without an 
individual's consent if the information is to be used for a purpose 
that is compatible with the purpose(s) for which the information was 
collected. Any such compatible use of data is known as a ``routine 
use''. The routine uses proposed for this System are compatible with 
the stated purpose of the System:
    The following routine uses apply to all records in this system 
except those maintained under an assurance of confidentiality provided 
by Section 308(d) of the Public Health Service Act (unless expressly 
authorized in the consent form or stipulated in the Assurance 
Statement):
    These records may be disclosed, i.e., returned to the State and/or 
local health departments in order for them to take measures to control, 
prevent, or treat disease and to conduct follow-up activities with 
patients and others contacted during the investigations. Private 
physicians may also be supplied pertinent medical information on their 
patients from these records.
    Disclosure may be made to a congressional office from the record of 
an individual in response to a verified inquiry from the congressional 
office made at the written request of that individual.
    In the event of litigation where the defendant is: (a) The 
Department, any component of the Department, or any employee of the 
Department in his or her official capacity; (b) the United States where 
the Department determines that the claim, if successful, is likely to 
directly affect the operations of the Department or any of its 
components; or (c) any Department employee in his or her individual 
capacity where the Department of Justice has agreed to represent such 
employee, for example, in defending a claim against the Public Health 
Service based upon an individual's mental or physical condition and 
alleged to have arisen because of activities of the Public Health 
Service in connection with such individual, disclosure may be made to 
the Department of Justice to enable that Department to present an 
effective defense, provided that such disclosure is compatible with the 
purpose for which the records were collected.
    Records may be disclosed to appropriate Federal agencies and 
Department contractors that have a need to know the information for the 
purpose of assisting the Department's efforts to

[[Page 4454]]

respond to a suspected or confirmed breach of the security or 
confidentiality of information disclosed is relevant and necessary for 
that assistance.

IV. Effects of the Proposed System of Records on Individual Rights

    The routine uses proposed for this System are compatible with the 
stated purpose of the System:
    The first routine use permits an individual may learn if a record 
exists about himself or herself by contacting the system manager at the 
address above. Requesters in person must provide driver's license or 
other positive identification. Individuals who do not appear in person 
must either: (1) Submit a notarized request to verify their identity; 
or (2) certify that they are the individuals they claim to be and that 
they understand that the knowing and willful request for or acquisition 
of a record pertaining to an individual under false pretenses is a 
criminal offense under the Privacy Act subject to a $5,000 fine.
    An individual who requests notification of or access to medical 
records shall, at the time the request is made, designate in writing a 
responsible representative who is willing to review the record and 
inform the subject individual of its contents at the representative's 
discretion.
    A parent or guardian who requests notification of, or access to, a 
child's medical record shall designate a family physician or other 
health professional (other than a family member) to whom the record, if 
any, will be sent. The parent or guardian must verify relationship to 
the child by means of a birth certificate or court order, as well as 
verify that he or she is who he or she claims to be.
    The following information must be provided when requesting 
notification: (1) Full name; (2) the approximate date and place of the 
study, if known; and (3) nature of the questionnaire or study in which 
the requester participated.
    Same as notification procedures. Requesters should also reasonably 
specify the record contents being sought. An accounting of disclosures 
that have been made of the record, if any, may be requested.

V. Safeguards

    The records in this System are stored in file folders. Service 
fellow personnel data is also maintained in an automated database. The 
records in this System are retrieved by the name of the individual, 
fellow, or guest researcher.
    The records in this System have the following safeguards in place 
to maintain and protect the information as it relates to Authorized 
users, physical and procedural safeguards:
    Authorized users--A database security package is implemented on 
CDC's mainframe computer to control unauthorized access to the system. 
Attempts to gain access by unauthorized individuals are automatically 
recorded and reviewed on a regular basis. Access is granted to only a 
limited number of physicians, scientists, statisticians, and designated 
support staff of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 
or its contractors, as authorized by the system manager to accomplish 
the stated purposes for which the data in this system have been 
collected.
    Physical Safeguards--A database security package is implemented on 
CDC's mainframe computer to control unauthorized access to the system. 
Attempts to gain access by unauthorized individuals are automatically 
recorded and reviewed on a regular basis. Access is granted to only a 
limited number of physicians, scientists, statisticians, and designated 
support staff of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 
or its contractors, as authorized by the system manager to accomplish 
the stated purposes for which the data in this system have been 
collected.
    Procedural Safeguards--Protection for computerized records both on 
the mainframe and the National Centers' Local Area Networks (LAN)s 
includes programmed verification of valid user identification code and 
password prior to logging on to the system, mandatory password changes, 
limited log-ins, virus protection, and user rights/file attribute 
restrictions. Password protection imposes user name and password log-in 
requirements to prevent unauthorized access. Each user name is assigned 
limited access rights to files and directories at varying levels to 
control file sharing. There are routine daily backup procedures and 
secure off-site storage is available. To avoid inadvertent data 
disclosure, ``an additional procedure'' is performed to ensure that all 
data are removed from Privacy Act computer tapes and/or other magnetic 
media. Additional safeguards may be built into the program by the 
system analyst as warranted by the sensitivity of the data.
    CDC and contractor employees who maintain records are instructed to 
check with the system manager prior to making disclosures of data. When 
individually identified data are being used in a room, admittance at 
either CDC or contractor sites is restricted to specifically authorized 
personnel. Privacy Act provisions are included in contracts, and the 
CDC Project Director, contract officers and project officers oversee 
compliance with these requirements. Upon completion of the contract, 
all data will be either returned to CDC or destroyed, as specified by 
the contract.
    Implementation Guidelines: The safeguards outlined above in 
accordance with the HHS Information Security Program Policy and FIPS 
Pub 200, ``Minimum Security Requirements for Federal Information and 
Information Systems.'' Data maintained on CDC's Mainframe and the 
National Centers' LANs are in compliance with OMB Circular A-130, 
Appendix III. Security is provided for information collection, 
processing, transmission, storage, and dissemination in general support 
systems and major applications.
    The records in this System are retained and disposed of in the 
following way: Records are retained and disposed of in accordance with 
the CDC Records Control Schedule. Records are maintained in agency for 
four years. Disposal methods include erasing computer media, burning or 
shredding paper materials or transferring records to the Federal 
Records Center when no longer needed for evaluation and analysis. 
Records destroyed by paper recycling process when 20 years old, unless 
needed for further study.

VI. OMB Control Numbers, Expiration Dates, and Titles of Information 
Collection

    A. Full Title: ``Epidemic Investigation Case Records, HHS/CDC/
NCID.''
    OMB Control Number: 09-20-0113.
    Expiration Date: TBD.

VII. Supporting Documentation

    A. Preamble and Proposed Notice of System for publication in the 
Federal Register.
    B. Agency Rules: None.
    C. Exemption Requested: None.
    D. Computer Matching Report: The new system does not require a 
matching report in accordance with the computer matching provisions of 
the Privacy Act.

[FR Doc. 2010-33014 Filed 1-24-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P