The 21st Century Cures Act Information Blocking Rule in Post-Acute Long-Term Care

Included as part of the 21st Century Cures Act, the information blocking rule entered the first compliance phase in April 2021. Under this rule, post-acute long-term care (PALTC) facilities must not engage in any activity that interferes with accessing, using, or exchanging electronic health information. In addition, facilities must respond to information requests in a timely fashion and allow records to be readily available to patients and their delegates. Although hospitals have been slow to adapt to these changes, skilled nursing and other PALTC centers have been even slower.