So-called data-mining companies that collect information about the drugs doctors prescribe asked an appeals court Tuesday to stop Vermont from enacting a law next week restricting their work. Attorney Thomas Julin told a three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that it would violate the First Amendment rights of the companies if…
Category: Uncategorized
Malaysia passes DNA law before Anwar sodomy case
Malaysia has passed a law that will force criminal suspects to provide DNA samples, despite opposition complaints that the bill was aimed at legitimizing evidence in the sodomy trial of their leader Anwar Ibrahim. Under the act, which parliament passed today with a simple majority, courts can compel suspects to provide non-intimate DNA samples such…
Case shows need to review privacy laws' effect on safety
Tayler Andrews would have turned a year old last week, on June 16. It was a difficult day for his grandmother and grandfather. They fretted, mourned and re-asked themselves a lot of questions. Why couldn’t we stop it? Why did no one help? Why didn’t anyone listen? You probably recall the recent, sad stories in…
Ca: ICBC cuts deal with chiropractors for patient medical records
The Insurance Corp. of B.C. is defending its decision to enter into an agreement with B.C. chiropractors that could give the corporation access to patients’ medical records. Under the deal, ICBC will pay chiropractors a $900 flat fee for treating an ICBC customer. The chiropractor could then provide ICBC with records of the patient’s treatment….
Public curiosity should not trump medical privacy
More troubling news on the Daniel Hauser case, from the AP: A Minnesota judge has denied a request to seal the medical records of a 13-year-old boy who gained national attention when he fled the state last month to avoid chemotherapy to treat his Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Brown County District Judge John Rodenberg ruled this week…
Patient Advocacy Groups Urge Greater Focus on Patients' Choice and Privacy Rights in Health-Reform Debate
From the Institute for Health Freedom, this press release: While Congressional debate is focused primarily on whether to include a public option for health insurance, many Americans remain concerned about how a mandate for private health insurance will affect their health-care choices and privacy. “We’re hearing politicians promise that if people like their existing…