Lynda

FYI

Lynda
----- Original Message -----

> Libertarians launch Internet campaign to thwart
> government attack on medical privacy
>
> WASHINGTON, DC -- Americans have less than three weeks to
> block a federal regulation that would require health care providers to
> turn medical records over to the government -- which could then share
> them with third parties such as private marketers, police agencies,
> and
> even foreign governments.
>
> "If this regulation is approved, you can kiss your medical
> privacy good-bye," said Steve Dasbach, Libertarian Party national
> director. "Soon a prospective employer, local cop or even a nosy
> neighbor with a government job may know if you've ever undergone drug
> or alcohol treatment, had an abortion or contracted an embarrassing
> disease."
>
> Dasbach announced that the Libertarian Party has launched an
> Internet campaign to kill the regulation, based on the party's
> successful effort to derail the FDIC's "Know Your Customer" bank
> spying
> law in March, 1999. Americans can visit
> http://www.DefendYourPrivacy.com/ to send an e-mail petition asking
> their Congressional representative to block the regulation.
>
> By April 14, Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy
> Thompson must decide whether to implement the "medical privacy" rules
> submitted in the waning days of the Clinton administration. The rules,
> published in the Federal Register on December 28, 2000, mandate that
> every doctor and health care provider turn patient records over to the
> HHS and other federal agencies for "safekeeping" -- regardless of
> whether patients consent.
>
> "If you like the way the government protected the confidentiality
> of your Social Security number, you're going to love the way it
> protects your medical records," Dasbach said. "The first step toward
> protecting your health data is to make sure the government doesn't
> have
> it -- which is why we need to block this regulation immediately."
>
> Dasbach noted that the prestigious American Association of
> Physicians and Surgeons is also fighting the regulation, which the
> group says would "enable if not guarantee wholesale invasions of
> privacy." The letter, which documents section by section the problems
> with the regulation, can be viewed online at
> http://www.aapsonline.org/aaps/confiden/hhscounscomm.htm.
>
> The regulation would:
>
> * Allow the disclosure, without patient consent, of all medical
> records for "public health surveillance activities" and dozens of
> other
> purposes. Providers could refuse to treat people who refuse to
> surrender their records.
>
> * Permit police agencies to access medical records without a
> search warrant.
>
> * Give the government the right to access the private notes of a
> psychotherapist.
>
> * Allow foreign government officials to see Americans' health
> records, as long as the U.S. government claims it is doing it for a
> "national health purpose."
>
> * Establish a "unique patient identifier" -- a number that would
> make accessing medical records as easy as reading an individual's
> credit history is now.
>
> * Allow private insurance companies to access the medical
> information and compile it into a database.
>
> * Give direct marketers access to medical records, and allow
> pharmacies to share prescription records "for the purpose of marketing
> health-related products and services" -- all without patient consent.
>
> * Prevent patients involved in health research projects from
> accessing their own medical records.
>
> "If these proposals aren't stopped, your medical privacy will be
> in critical condition," Dasbach said. "Fortunately, there's a way to
> prevent them from going into effect -- but time is running out. Go to
> DefendYourPrivacy.com immediately and join the Libertarian Party's
> campaign. Protect your medical privacy by pulling the plug on these
> frightening new regulations."
>
> Americans who visit the site will be able to send an e-mail to
> their Congressional representatives urging them to co-sponsor a House
> resolution that would block the rules. The measure, HJR 38, sponsored
> by U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, declares that the rules "shall have no
> force or effect."
>
> "Libertarians proved that e-mail is the musket of the 21st
> century when we flooded the FDIC with nearly 300,000 comments in
> February and March, 1999, forcing the agency to abandon its attack on
> Americans' financial privacy," Dasbach said.
>
> "Now we intend to deploy that weapon again to thwart a raid on
> medical privacy, and we're all inviting all Americans to join us. What
> part of the word 'privacy' doesn't the government understand?"