AAPS: It's Time to Draw the Line in the Sand on Medical PrivacyDr. Miguel A. Faria Jr.
Thursday, March 22, 2001
Click Here to sign the Free Petition to stop these rule changes. Readers of NewsMax.com are now aware that the federal government was scheduled to implement, on Feb. 26, medical privacy regulations left over from the Clinton administration that would have given the government agency HHS unprecedented access to information contained in personal medical records.
Fortunately, the date was postponed when a groundswell of opposition developed as a result of a Feb. 22 press release issued by the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS).
The AAPS warned that although the regulations are shrouded in language to make it appear they are protecting "medical privacy," they are in fact an attempt eliminate the privacy of your medical records.
The alert was so effective that it jammed the e-mail system at the Department of Health and Human Services.
The AAPS press release pointed out that even though problems exist with specific provisions in the regulations, the bottom line is that this is such a bad set of regulations that they must be completely discarded.
The Bush administration and HHS should scrap them.
Dr. Jane Orient, AAPS executive director, stated, "The draft rule [Federal Register for 12/28/00, pp. 82829-82462] of the regulation is so flawed in concept and execution that a total new beginning is needed."
This 1,500-page document, enacted to fulfill part of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, was a direct result of the Clinton view that the government should control every aspect of U.S. medical care.
Thus, the regulations, touted as protecting patient privacy, would actually compromise your privacy.
Moreover, they are so confusing that no one knows what the ultimate results would be.
Final decisions, then, would be handed off to the Office of Civil Rights. So whatever the lawyers in that office decree as a citizen's right to medical privacy would be the final word. Your privacy would be at risk. You have until March 30 – the date of the end of the official comment period – to let HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson and your elected senators and representatives know your concerns.
Thompson plans to give a decision by April 14, and of course, you are free to express your opinion about the rules to him and Congress until that date and after. It's imperative you speak out.
What could the regulations entail?
Kathryn Serkes, AAPS public relations counsel, has pointed out:
- The rules create a massive federal mandate that requires every doctor to share patients’ records with the federal government, without patient consent.
- Patients may have no guarantee of recourse for breaches of medical privacy other than the right to complain.
- The regulations may prevent doctors from informing parents of the specifics of their child’s medical condition.
- Patients may be refused medical treatment if they won’t give consent to health care providers to divulge their medical records to any parties.
Moreover, as pointed out by Drs. Michael Glueck and Robert Cihak (who happens to be the current president of the AAPS) in their online news column of March 19:
- The regulations will apply to all individuals regardless of whether their health care is paid for by them or by the government.
- Under the proposed regulations, the government, not you, will decide who has access to your medical records.
- And it is the government that can look into your electronic medical records – including genetic information – without getting your OK.
Glueck and Cihak add: "The regulations would also make it easier for government bureaucrats to look into your medical records, again without your permission. In fact, any government agent claiming a 'national priority purpose' can poke around in your most private medical details. In many cases, the government can then release your personal medical information from government files, without anybody having to ask you for permission." This is frightening.
Furthermore, Andrew L. Schlafly, Esq., AAPS general counsel, has also expressed concerns that:
- The new rules operate to limit a patient's access to his own records, state laws notwithstanding, while giving the government unfettered access.
- The new rules allow state governments to effectively eviscerate the protections by compiling and distributing records, as Texas is considering doing now with respect to a new vaccine registry.
- HHS can disclose personal medical information, if required by any other law. Instead, other laws should be pre-empted by the privacy rule.
- Medical researchers can withhold records from subjects who agree to be tested with new drugs and treatments. Is this designed to conceal trial failures?
To maintain control of your own private medical information, AAPS suggests that: 1. The government protect, not eliminate, your right to require your consent before your personal medical information can be given out;
2. You should not be forced to accept a "unique health identifier" ID number for tagging and tracking your medical records electronically;
3. And, if anyone, including a government official, abuses your privacy and breaks the law, you should have the right to sue that individual and be compensated for invasion of your privacy.
Remember, the clock is ticking.
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