[Med-privacy] "White House Called Lax in Enforcing Medical Privacy"

[pmarshall]

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White House Called Lax in Enforcing Medical Privacy

Reuters Health Information 2004. =A9 2004 Reuters Ltd.

By Susan Heavey

WASHINGTON (Reuters) Apr 13 - The Bush administration is failing to=20
enforce year-old privacy protections that aim to safeguard medical=20
records, a watchdog group said on Monday.

More than 5000 consumer complaints about privacy violations have been=20
filed, but the government has not imposed any civil penalties, according =

to a report by the Health Privacy Project.

Instead, the burden of protecting medical privacy falls to consumers,=20
many of whom are unsure of their rights or misinterpret them, the report =

found.

"The Bush administration has failed to act aggressively to promote and=20
enforce the law's language and intent," Janlori Goldman, the group's=20
president, said in a statement.

U.S. officials also violated the spirit of the provisions by recently=20
demanding women's medical records as part of legal action over so-called =

partial-birth abortion, the report said.

But the administration defended itself, saying it is tracking complaints =

and resolving them quickly.

Under the law, doctors, hospitals, health plans and others must take=20
steps to keep as much information as possible confidential.

Such measures include giving patients a notice detailing how their=20
information will be used and not listing their ailments on sign-in=20
sheets. Patients also have rights to view and copy their records but not =

the right to sue.

Richard Campanelli, head of civil rights for the Department of Health=20
and Human Services, said the 5,000 complaints showed consumers were=20
aware of their new rights.

About half of the 5000 complaints have been resolved, and about 50 of=20
those were referred to the Justice Department for possible criminal=20
action, he said.

"The other investigations will continue...If we need to pursue penalties =

we will," said Campanelli.

The federal rules were implemented by former President Bill Clinton in=20
2001. They took effect last year under the Bush administration, which=20
agreed to implement them but made changes that critics said weakened the =

protections.

A majority of providers have put protections in place, a separate survey =

released on Monday showed.

The study, conducted by the American Health Information Management=20
Association, found nearly 70 percent of privacy officials at hospitals,=20
doctors' offices and other facilities thought they were between 85 and=20
99 percent compliant.

(Additional reporting by Lisa Richwine.)

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