Posted by mars on January 21, 2001, at 23:02:43
In reply to Patient Files Opened to Marketers, Fundraisers, posted by shellie on January 21, 2001, at 11:00:07
Yikes, Shellie, this really blew my mind. I looked up the article on the Post site. Thanks for bring this to our attention.
I feel a bout of letter-writing coming on.
mary (now a niche market)
> Remember the posts that had to do with pharmacies giving out information about us, to be used for solicition or other reasons. And that there was a class action suit going on in Massachusetts against CVS for doing exactly that.
>
> Well, now it's going to be legal. As part of new federal regulations, which include good things like new patients' rights to access their own records, and prohibit employers from receiving personal health care data, "federal regulations will for the first time, explicitly permit doctors, hospitals, other health services and some of their business associates[including pharmacies] to use personal health records for marketing and fundraising. ....When contacting a patient, marketers will have to disclose the source of personal information, describe their financial benfit and explain why the individual was targeted for a promotion."
>
> Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) may pursue legislation again the provision, so he is the guy to e-mail, write, or call at this point to encourage this legislation.
>
> Shellie
poster:mars
thread:4096
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20010105/msgs/4112.html