[GWfan]

Medicare has federal as well as state regulations for privacy and for submitting claims, just as any government agency does. As for your private insurance, they also have claim forms, etc. which are mandatory if your doctor is paid directly.

If you have ever signed a claim form, you have signed a release of medical records to your insurance company because you want your doctor to be paid. You can avoid it all by paying cash and not turning in a bill to your ins. co.

[GWfan]

I should add that medicare requires that if you use a participating provider, that a claim is submitted.

I did not make the rules, I just know what they are. If you don't like them, vote to change them.

[Iwo Jima]

Of course I sign consent forms to send records to my insurance company. That has nothing to do with the federal government or the Clinton/Bush regulations. The insurance infomation is controlled by state law. It has nothing to do with the federal government and needs no "assistance" from it.

Once again, WHAT PROBLEM ARE WE TRYING TO SOLVE? Give me a concrete example of the way things have been done throughtout our entire lifetimes that you think is so totally unsupportable that we have to get the federal government to come in and straigthen us out?