Arie Friedman, MD writes:
As I have read through the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (PPACA, aka ObamaCare), I have been repeatedly struck by the disregard the law has for patient privacy. Time and time again, the PPACA authorizes the federal government to obtain information about patients directly from their health care providers. A particularly vivid example is Section 4302, “Understanding Health Disparities: Data Collection and Analysis.” Section 4302 literally opens up almost every medical record in this country for government review and data collection. Let’s go through the section with an eye towards patient privacy issues:
Read his commentary on American Thinker. Whether you agree with his interpretation or concerns or not, it’s helpful to read the actual language of the statute so you can form your own opinion about ObamaCare and patient privacy.
That is the risk with EHR’s when they are mandated as overarching information systems for health system quality and improvements. They really should be called GHR’s, or government health records. Patient records should remain either with the clinician that deals directly with the patient, or with the patient. Anything else risks creating an information ecology of medical data with rich ($$) possibilities for researchers and others.
Well put, John. Thanks!