[Med-privacy] PRESS RELEASE: Patient Privacy Organization Asks President Bush to
Guarantee Privacy in Health IT Legislation
dpeelmd@aol.com
dpeelmd@aol.com
Tue, 11 Jul 2006 09:43:33 -0400
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For Immediate Release July 11, 2006
Contact: Tina Williamson (512) 732-0033
twilliamson@patientprivacyrights.org
PATIENT PRIVACY ORGANIZATION ASKS PRESIDENT BUSH
TO GUARANTEE PRIVACY IN=20
HEALTH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY LEGISLATION
Patients Cannot Control Who Can Access Their Electronic Medical Data Though=20=
President Bush Says They Can
Austin, Texas - Patient Privacy Rights, a national consumer privacy watchdog=
organization, sent President Bush a letter on Friday, urging him to ask Con=
gress to include specific patient privacy protections in health information=20=
technology (HIT) legislation.=20
=E2=80=9CThe President has clearly stated he wants patients to control acces=
s to their personal electronic health records, but he has not told Congress=20=
they must fix the proposed legislation to restore patients=E2=80=99 rights t=
o control their medical records,=E2=80=9D said Deborah Peel, MD, Chairman of=
Patient Privacy Rights Foundation.
President Bush has said repeatedly in public speeches [see the President=E2=
=80=99s statements on medical privacy for electronic medical records] that A=
mericans can control who can access their electronic medical records, but th=
at is not true. The Department of Health and Human Services changed HIPAA re=
gulations in 2002 eliminating the =E2=80=9Cright of consent=E2=80=9D, the ri=
ght to give permission before personal health records can be seen or used by=
others.
=E2=80=9CWithout basic privacy protections built into the legislation up fro=
nt, Congress will create an electronic superhighway system for datamining th=
e nation=E2=80=99s medical records,=E2=80=9D Peel said. =20
The Senate has passed =E2=80=9CWired for Health Care Quality Act=E2=80=9D (S=
. 1418) promoting health information technology (HIT) and the House is expec=
ted to pass =E2=80=9CHealth Information Technology Promotion Act of 2005=E2=
=80=9D (H.R. 4157) promoting HIT very soon. Both bills rely on the existing=
privacy protections found in HIPAA, which currently do not allow patients t=
o control who can access their electronic records.
Patient Privacy Rights has been urging Congress to add specific privacy lang=
uage to upcoming HIT legislation because HIPAA regulations currently do not=20=
allow patients to give permission before their medical information can be se=
en and used, and because current HIPAA enforcement has netted only two viola=
tors and resulted in no fines since the new regulations became effective in=20=
2002.
=E2=80=9CAs we suspected and as HHS has admitted, medical privacy protection=
s and enforcements are virtually nonexistent in this country. The reason th=
e vast majority of complaints are dismissed is because HIPAA is almost impos=
sible to violate. It is toothless,=E2=80=9D Peel said.
In the letter to the President, Patient Privacy Rights reminded the Presiden=
t Bush of his own quotes on patient privacy:=20
=E2=80=9COur goal, by the way, is for every American to have a electronic me=
dical record. And -- but, by the way, with a guarantee of privacy.=E2=80=9D=20=
May 22, 2006=20
=E2=80=9C=E2=80=A6.I don't want people prying into them, I don't want people=
looking at them, I don't want people opening them up unless I say it's fine=
for you to do so.=E2=80=9D January 27, 2005=20
=E2=80=9C=E2=80=A6.I want there to be good information technology in the hea=
lth care field, I just don't want somebody looking at my records unless I gi=
ve them permission to do so.=E2=80=9D April 27, 2004
Patient Privacy Rights asked that President Bush urge Congress to include th=
e following provisions in HIT legislation:
Expressly recognize the individual=E2=80=99s right to medical privacy=20
Give patients control over who can see & use their electronic medical record=
s=20
Allow patients to opt-in, opt-out=20
Give patients the right to segment sensitive information=20
Provide protections including audit trails, breach notification, and meaning=
ful penalties for privacy violations
About Patient Privacy Rights
Patient Privacy Rights is a national consumer watchdog organization based in=
Austin, TX. The mission of Patient Privacy Rights is to empower Americans=20=
to protect and preserve their human rights to medical privacy. Patient Priv=
acy Rights believes Americans should have the right to decide who can see an=
d use their medical records and is educating Americans about threats to pati=
ent privacy. They have launched an online petition for Americans to tell Con=
gress =E2=80=9CI Want My Medical Privacy=E2=80=9D.
Web site: http://www.patientprivacyrights.org/=20
Sign the =E2=80=9CI Want My Medical Privacy=E2=80=9D Petition: www.patientp=
rivacyrights.org/petition
To view previous letters to Congress from the Coalition for Patient Privacy:
www.patientprivacyrights.org/privacycoalition
=20
Forward this message to a friend | Visit patientprivacyrights.org
Unsubscribe
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DING-TOP: 8px">
<div>For Immediate Release July 11, 2006<br>
Contact: Tina Williamson (512) 732-0033<br>
<A title=3D"E-mail twilliamson@patientprivacyrights.org" href=3D"javascript:=
parent.ComposeTo('twilliamson@patientprivacyrights.org');">twilliamson@patie=
ntprivacyrights.org</A></div>
<div align=3Dcenter><FONT style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 120%; COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAM=
ILY: Verdana" face=3D"Verdana " color=3D#000000 size=3D3><STRONG>PATIENT PRI=
VACY ORGANIZATION ASKS PRESIDENT BUSH<br>
TO GUARANTEE PRIVACY IN <br>
HEALTH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY LEGISLATION</STRONG></FONT></div>
<div align=3Dcenter><FONT style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 120%; COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAM=
ILY: Verdana" face=3D"Verdana " color=3D#000000 size=3D3><STRONG>Patients Ca=
nnot Control Who Can Access Their Electronic Medical Data Though President B=
ush Says They Can</STRONG></FONT></div>
<div>Austin, Texas - Patient Privacy Rights, a national consumer privacy wat=
chdog organization, <A href=3D"http://www.patientprivacyrights.org/site/R?i=
=3Dxm5_5bgjeZw6_OS8Luh1eA.." target=3D_blank>sent President Bush a letter on=
Friday</A>, urging him to ask Congress to include specific patient privacy=20=
protections in health information technology (HIT) legislation. </div>
<div>=E2=80=9CThe President has clearly stated he wants patients to control=20=
access to their personal electronic health records, but he has not told Cong=
ress they must fix the proposed legislation to restore patients=E2=80=99 rig=
hts to control their medical records,=E2=80=9D said Deborah Peel, MD, Chairm=
an of Patient Privacy Rights Foundation.</div>
<div>President Bush has said repeatedly in public speeches [<A href=3D"http:=
//www.patientprivacyrights.org/site/R?i=3Dk6P75FXpIFk_yjiUsJE1xw.." target=
=3D_blank>see the President=E2=80=99s statements</A> on medical privacy for=20=
electronic medical records] that Americans can control who can access their=20=
electronic medical records, but that is not true. The Department of Health a=
nd Human Services changed <SPAN class=3Dcorrection id=3D"">HIPAA</SPAN> regu=
lations in 2002 eliminating the =E2=80=9Cright of consent=E2=80=9D, the righ=
t to give permission before personal health records can be seen or used by o=
thers.</div>
<div>=E2=80=9CWithout basic privacy protections built into the legislation u=
p front, Congress will create an electronic superhighway system for <SPAN cl=
ass=3Dcorrection id=3D"">datamining</SPAN> the nation=E2=80=99s medical reco=
rds,=E2=80=9D Peel said. </div>
<div>The Senate has passed =E2=80=9CWired for Health Care Quality Act=E2=80=
=9D (S. 1418) promoting health information technology (HIT) and the House is=
expected to pass =E2=80=9CHealth Information Technology Promotion Act of 20=
05=E2=80=9D (H.R. 4157) promoting HIT very soon. Both bills rely on th=
e existing privacy protections found in <SPAN class=3Dcorrection id=3D"">HIP=
AA</SPAN>, which currently do not allow patients to control who can access t=
heir electronic records.</div>
<div>Patient Privacy Rights has been urging Congress to add specific privacy=
language to upcoming HIT legislation because <SPAN class=3Dcorrection id=
=3D"">HIPAA</SPAN> regulations currently do not allow patients to give permi=
ssion before their medical information can be seen and used, and because cur=
rent <SPAN class=3Dcorrection id=3D"">HIPAA</SPAN> enforcement has netted on=
ly two violators and resulted in no fines since the new regulations became e=
ffective in 2002.</div>
<div>=E2=80=9CAs we suspected and as <SPAN class=3Dcorrection id=3D"">HHS</S=
PAN> has admitted, medical privacy protections and <SPAN class=3Dcorrection=20=
id=3D"">enforcements</SPAN> are virtually nonexistent in this country. =
The reason the vast majority of complaints are dismissed is because <SPAN c=
lass=3Dcorrection id=3D"">HIPAA</SPAN> is almost impossible to violate. =
; It is <SPAN class=3Dcorrection id=3D"">toothless</SPAN>,=E2=80=9D Peel sai=
d.</div>
<div><A href=3D"http://www.patientprivacyrights.org/site/R?i=3D2Fnm1S3HVi1Ec=
GBIaYT95Q.." target=3D_blank>In the letter to the President</A>, Patient Pri=
vacy Rights reminded the President Bush of his own quotes on patient privacy=
: </div>
<UL>
<LI>=E2=80=9COur goal, by the way, is for every American to have a electroni=
c medical record. And -- but, by the way, with a guarantee of privacy.=E2=
=80=9D May 22, 2006=20
<LI>=E2=80=9C=E2=80=A6.I don't want people prying into them, I don't want pe=
ople looking at them, I don't want people opening them up unless I say it's=20=
fine for you to do so.=E2=80=9D January 27, 2005=20
<LI>=E2=80=9C=E2=80=A6.I want there to be good information technology in the=
health care field, I just don't want somebody looking at my records unless=20=
I give them permission to do so.=E2=80=9D April 27, 2004</LI></UL>
<div>Patient Privacy Rights asked that President Bush urge Congress to inclu=
de the following provisions in HIT legislation:</div>
<UL>
<LI>Expressly recognize the individual=E2=80=99s right to medical privacy=20
<LI>Give patients control over who can see & use their electronic medica=
l records=20
<LI>Allow patients to opt-in, opt-out=20
<LI>Give patients the right to segment sensitive information=20
<LI>Provide protections including audit trails, breach notification, and mea=
ningful penalties for privacy violations</LI></UL>
<div><STRONG>About Patient Privacy Rights</STRONG><br>
Patient Privacy Rights is a national consumer watchdog organization based in=
Austin, TX. The mission of Patient Privacy Rights is to empower Ameri=
cans to protect and preserve their human rights to medical privacy. Pa=
tient Privacy Rights believes Americans should have the right to decide who=20=
can see and use their medical records and is educating Americans about threa=
ts to patient privacy. They have launched an online petition for Americans t=
o tell Congress =E2=80=9CI Want My Medical Privacy=E2=80=9D.</div>
<div>Web site: <A href=3D"http://www.patientprivacyrights.org/site/R?i=
=3DZS6eZTwAu14kJ2QzS_9ocw.." target=3D_blank>http://www.patientprivacyrights=
.org/</A> </div>
<div>Sign the =E2=80=9CI Want My Medical Privacy=E2=80=9D Petition: <A=
href=3D"http://www.patientprivacyrights.org/site/R?i=3Dqh43xh5sxevbXn5A5Ffl=
UA.." target=3D_blank>www.patientprivacyrights.org/petition</A></div>
<div>To view previous letters to Congress from the Coalition for Patient Pri=
vacy:<br>
<A href=3D"http://www.patientprivacyrights.org/site/R?i=3DXxy8XQ71wtV3YBB85e=
iyJg.." target=3D_blank>www.patientprivacyrights.org/<SPAN class=3Dcorrectio=
n id=3D"">privacycoalition</SPAN></A></div>
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