This is an article about an amendment proposed to a law that's already on the books. The 180 days thing is already the law of the land, this amendment sought to change that. There's now nothing in this bill relating to mail privacy (i.e. the existing law isn't being changed at all).

So, if that's the way you feel about it, the time to stop using free text email was 1986, when ECPA was first passed.