Tony Kennedy reports the latest on controversial newborn screening legislation in Minnesota that has been challenged in the courts: A state health program that takes blood samples from Minnesota newborns to screen for more than 50 diseases and disorders can continue despite a legal challenge on genetic privacy grounds, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled today….
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MW: Sex workers sue government after forced HIV test
From AFP: Some 14 Malawians sex workers arrested by police and forced to undergo HIV tests two years ago have sued the government for “unfair action and violating their privacy”, a high court official told AFP Sunday. The prostitutes, who all tested positive, filed for a judicial review of their case in 2009, but the…
Medical Records Stolen From Unlocked Hospital Boxes
Colleen Henry reports on a breach involving Columbia-St. Mary’s Ozaukee Hospital in Wisconsin that highlights some recurring problems with both breaches and breach notifications. I’m excerpting her excellent reporting to make a few points: Investigators said a janitor fed patient records to gang members. The lead investigator said a sworn statement that a janitor had…
OCR Announces HIPAA Audit Program
Joseph Lazzarotti writes: Today, the Office for Civil Rights formally announced it is implementing the audit requirement under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, in Section 13411 of the HITECH Act. The agency confirmed that it is piloting a program to perform up to 150 audits of covered entities to assess privacy and security compliance, and that the pilot phase…
Credit agencies sell personal info
Shannon Ross reports: You probably know that credit reporting companies collect personal information, like if you pay your bills on time. But, did you also know that they also keep track of the medications you take and assign it a score? Senator Chuck Schumer says they take that score and sell it to other companies,…
Coming up in Congress this Wednesday
The Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law will be holding a hearing: “Your Health and Your Privacy: Protecting Health Information in a Digital World” DATE: November 9, 2011 TIME: 02:30 PM ROOM: Dirksen 226 OFFICIAL HEARING NOTICE / WITNESS LIST: November 2, 2011 NOTICE OF SUBCOMMITTEE HEARING The Senate Committee on the…