Category: Uncategorized

Political hot potato: Irish psychiatrists have said they will not participate in any compulsory assessment of pregnant women who have suicidal ideation and are seeking an abortion. The College of Psychiatrists in Ireland said today its members will not be the country’s “social police”. Good for them! Read more on RTÉ News

Associated Press reports: Blocked by Congress from expanding gun sale background checks, President Obama is turning to actions within his own power to keep people from buying a gun who are prohibited for mental health reasons. Federal law bans certain mentally ill people from purchasing firearms, but not all states are providing data to stop…

There was a story from upstate New York that didn’t get my attention when I first read about it. A man was ordered to turn in his guns under New York’s new SAFE Act, allegedly because he had taken anti-anxiety medication and his mental health history made him a danger to himself or others.  His…

I was just reading a fascinating piece that made me aware of a book and case I need to be more informed about: On Twitter I was discussing the latest insult to the family of Henrietta Lacks, the woman whose cancer cells are still an important laboratory tool long after her death. The ethics here are…

Bryant Jordan reports: The chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee has filed legislation requiring Department of Veterans Affairs’ hospital personnel to have the consent of a patient or other authorized party before setting up surveillance cameras in the veteran’s room. Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., said in a statement Thursday his “Veterans Privacy Act” is…

The Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued an opinion yesterday that HIPAA trumps Florida state law concerning the release of deceased nursing home residents’ records. From the opinion: The issue before us is whether § 400.145 of the Florida Statutes—which provides for the release of medical records of deceased residents of nursing homes…