The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:

(a) The California Health and Human Services Agency manages great amounts of valuable data on all aspects of life for Californians, including, but not limited to, health care delivery, business, social services, child welfare, and public health.

(b) California has long recognized that securing individual privacy rights and confidentiality of personal health and medical records is of paramount importance to establishing public confidence in the provision of state services, and that ensuring transparent accountability, governance, and oversight are critical components to maintaining the public’s trust.

(c) Data is a fundamental asset that can be more fully utilized without compromising patient privacy and data security. Improving and streamlining collection practices, interoperability of data and technology, data infrastructure, data security, and data sharing is critical to the improvement of the lives of Californians and will foster person-centered and not program-centered decisionmaking.

(d) When data practices safeguard individual privacy, interpreting and using data improves public programs and policies and enriches the lives of people in many ways, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

(1) Analytics increase efficiency and help target resources to vulnerable and underserved populations.

(2) Data analytics allow for optimal use of existing resources and information assets to drive operational decisions and avoid changes that may result in adverse impacts or negative outcomes for vulnerable and underserved populations.

(3) Health and social services outcomes are improved through use of analytics to identify underserved populations, detect gaps in services, and improve and facilitate access to programs and services.

(4) Demographic and services information can be assessed to identify and address disparities, including racial, ethnic, gender, and geographic disparities, in health and socioeconomic status to advance equity and improve person-centered outcomes.

(e) Information sharing among state departments for integrated health and social services has been hindered by a lack of standardized interpretation and application of health privacy laws throughout the state. State departments often do not share information for integrated health and social services, even when sharing is appropriate, lawful, and permissible to all identifiable individuals. In order to provide efficient and effective health and social services, information should be securely exchanged among state departments in a manner that prioritizes individual privacy and autonomy over access to personal data.

(f) Unmitigated sharing and centralization of personal data relating to individuals presents unique risks to privacy, as that data can be used in concert to produce profiles revealing intimate details of individuals’ personal lives. Any policy related to data sharing, especially among governmental entities, must, therefore, be responsive to potential risks to personal privacy and include safeguards against invasive or excessive sharing of personal information.

(g) Data sharing has the potential to positively affect health and social services outcomes by linking vulnerable populations to services for which they are eligible.

(h) It is the intent of the Legislature to establish the Center for Data Insights and Innovation to do all of the following:

(1) Establish health information sharing guidance that balances the need for patient privacy with the benefits of data sharing to support and encourage integrated care and services to assist California health and social services organizations.

(2) Increase privacy protections by ensuring only required health data is transmitted for purposes and uses consistent with state and federal law.

(3) Administer the State Committee for the Protection of Human Subjects.

(4) Collect data and publish reports on quality of care and patient experience.

(5) Administer the California Health and Human Services Agency Open Data Portal.

(6) Develop and administer the California Health and Human Services Agency Research Data Hub and other future data initiatives.

(7) Improve and strengthen the security of data processes within the departments of the California Health and Human Services Agency.

(8) Identify and guide tangible and program-specific efforts, from the California Health and Human Services Agency leadership perspective, toward enhanced person-centered services that bridge and connect access to all health and social services programs for which an individual may be eligible.

(Added by Stats. 2021, Ch. 696, Sec. 11. (AB 172) Effective October 8, 2021.)