I realize not everyone will agree with me, but I see the abortion rights issue as a privacy issue and one of the confidential relationship between doctor and patient. The ACLU has posted a great graphic by Jen Sorensen on the stealth attack on abortion rights that I am reproducing here with their permission (click on…
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Court Overturns Presuit Patient Authorization Requirement Under Florida Medical Malpractice Statute
Anne C. Foster writes: On September 25, 2013, the Northern District Court of Florida, Tallahassee Division, ruled that Florida Statute § 766.1065 violated the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”) by requiring a plaintiff in a medical malpractice action to deliver a presuit authorization which allows the defending medical professionals to conduct ex…
Your prescription history is their business
Legal, but intrusive and creepy? David Lazarus reports: Think you can keep a medical condition secret from life insurers by paying cash for prescription meds? Think again. A for-profit service called ScriptCheck exists to rat you out regardless of how diligent you are in trying to keep a sensitive matter under wraps. ScriptCheck, offered by…
Is your doctor spying on your tweets? Social media raises medical privacy questions
Art Caplan poses an interesting ethical question: A friend recently brought to my attention a disturbing question from a psychiatrist working with a transplant team: Should she be checking the sobriety claims of liver transplant candidates by looking on their Twitter and other social media sites? That question merits discussion because it’s clear both doctors…
Medical Start-up Invited Millions Of Patients To Write Reviews They May Not Realize Are Public. Some Are Explicit. (update2)
Update: Practice Fusion responded to the Forbes story. See the Comments section below for a link to their statement. Kashmir Hill writes: Medical records start-up Practice Fusion has attracted a whopping $134 million in venture capital thanks to its appealing business model: it offers 100,000 (and counting) medical types free, web-based patient management services. The doctors get…
Senator Markey Queries Walgreens About How New Pharmacy Model Impacts Patient Privacy, Drug Security
With upwards of 20 states slated to begin implementing the new Walgreens “Well Experience” pharmacy model, Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) today called on the company to respond to questions about the potential impact on patient privacy, data security, and patient safety. The “Well Experience” model is a departure from traditional pharmaceutical activities, physically separating…