Mar 17 2008

Lessons to Learn from Britney’s Medical Breach

Thirteen employees at the UCLA Medical Center have been disciplined and are awaiting further suspension or termination of employment for prying into the medical records of Britney Spears while she was hospitalized. GoLeft is particularly partial to seeing justice for Britney, but found coverage of this story falls short of shining light on the medical privacy rights we have all lost. 
According to the non-profit group, Patient Privacy Rights, most people have no idea that basic patient privacy rights have been taken away. Your right to control the use and disclosure of your personal health information was eliminated in 2003 by regulatory changes made to HIPAA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. 
• The Privacy Notices you sign each time you seek medical care are actually Disclosure Notices.Read the fine print: it says your medical records will be shared without your knowledge or permission.
• Your medical records are open to use by over 4 million for-profit corporations. These businesses datamine your health records to sell drugs, services, or insurance to increase their profits - uses that have nothing to do with your health care or payment.
• Many employers see and use employee health records. In fact, 35% of Fortune 500 companies admit to using medical records for hiring and promotions (65 Fed. Reg. 82,467). Should your diagnosis or a family member’s illness affect your job or income?
• Congress is drafting laws now to build a national health information network allowing access to every American’s health records without adequate privacy safeguards. Learn more about this Legislation

Comments:

That is really horrifying!  Do we have the right to not sign the HIPAA form??

By ms. a on Mar 18 2008

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