MN Health Department Can Collect Medical Records, Judge Rules

[Guest guest]

How many of these ducks do you need in a row to get what is happening?

Sheri

http://www.MedicalNewswire.com

MN Health Department Can Collect Medical Records, Judge Rules

ST. PAUL, Minn. (HIPAA Wire) A Minnesota state judge ruled Dec. 1 to permit

the state’s Health Department to collect medical records on almost every

state citizen, according to the Associated Press.

Administrative law judge Allan Klein agreed with the Minnesota Health

Department that collecting medical data would aid researchers who study

disease clusters throughout the state, a decision that came as a shock to

groups who feel the ruling means patient privacy in the state has hit a

brick wall.

But an official with the Health Department said the risk to patient privacy

is minimal compared to the benefits that would result from greater access

to medical records.

The ruling provides for the creation of a huge database to track the

quality of health care in the state. The database would include information

such as individuals who had a stroke or an abortion, as well the specific

medications taken by patients, the AP reports.

Klein said there was no way to reconcile the disparate perspectives and

desires among privacy advocates and the Health Department, but admonished

the Department to take the appropriate steps to protect patient privacy.

Health officials claim the information gathered in the database would

enable them to improve the quality of health care. They say patient

identifiers would be deleted or encrypted before the data leaves the

Department for any purpose.

--------------------------------------------------------

Sheri Nakken, R.N., MA

Vaccination Information & Choice Network, Nevada City CA & Wales UK

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" Just look at us. Everything is backwards; everything is upside down.

Doctors destroy health, lawyers destroy justice, universities destroy

knowledge, governments destroy freedom, the major media destroy information

and religions destroy spirituality " .... Ellner

[Guest guest]

More on this total outrage! The changes just keep coming. At the very least,

the

patient identifiers should be removed BEFORE going to the state. The insurers

could simply assign a number to each patient for the purposes of this research,

and

the State would never have to know who any of them are. With this information,

it

looks like the State would also know exactly who has been vaccinated for

what..........

Apparently the great public outcry meant absolutely nothing to this judge.

There may

come a time when some people will go to small clinics, pay cash and lie about

who

they are to have any privacy at all (those who can affored to)

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http://216.239.51.100/search?q=cache:i_Gvd9pbL_kC:www.health.state.mn.us/divs/hp

sc/dap/encounter/cmntltr.pdf+%22Allan+Klein%22+AND+Database & hl=en & ie=UTF-8

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http://news.mpr.org/features/200212/02_scheckt_medprivacy/

========

http://www.kdlh.com/home/headlines/163332.html

>>

" The medical database would include everything from who has a

stroke, abortion or surgery to who takes Prozac. "

>>>

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Judge OKs state health database

Maura Lerner

Star Tribune

Published Dec. 3, 2002 PRIV03

The Minnesota Health Department has won a victory in its controversial proposal

to collect medical data on patients across the state for use in research.

An administrative law judge ruled Monday that the department has the power to

collect the data, including patient names, addresses and medical conditions,

from hospitals and health insurers.

The judge, Allan Klein, noted that the proposal has created an outcry from

opponents who consider it a violation of privacy and that most public comments

ran against it.

But he said that the Health Department had proved its case, that the rule was

reasonable under state law, and that officials were taking adequate safeguards

to prevent misuse of the information.

" We're disappointed, to say the least, " said Twila Brase, a St. activist

who led the battle to overturn the rule. " There are two views of where privacy

begins here, and his view sides with the department and not with the public's

view. "

Dave Orren, a Health Department official, called the decision a relief. " I

really do think that the perception of some people that the data is going to be

collected by us and basically posted on a billboard is just wrong, " he said.

" Our challenge is to get people to understand . . . that it is a very small

risk. "

But both sides said the battle isn't over. They say it will probably shift back

to the Legislature, which originally authorized the data collection in a 1993

law. In the years since, legislators have turned back two attempts to repeal the

law, but Brase said she is prepared to try again.

And Klein, in his ruling, said that is where the debate belongs. " Striking an

appropriate balance between personal privacy and health care research is

ultimately the task of the Legislature, " he wrote in a 37-page decision.

The Health Department wants the information to do research on the quality and

cost of health care in Minnesota. It has promised to encrypt any information

that would identify individuals.

Under the proposal, it would create a database to track every time a patient

goes to a doctor or a hospital in Minnesota. The information, which comes from

patient billing records, would include which drugs they take, how often they

take them and any treatment they receive.

Health officials say names and other identifying information are needed so they

can follow patients over time and avoid duplication. But they say all such

information will be replaced by several layers of codes and numbers, to make

sure no one's privacy is violated, before the information is shared with

researchers.

Critics accused the Health Department of exceeding its authority, and of

violating federal law, after the proposal was made public in August.

Opponents turned out in force at a public hearing in October and sent hundreds

of e-mail messages during the comment period that followed. Many said the state

had no right to the data.

" There's no way that the public believes privacy begins after their information

has been transferred to the Health Department, " said Brase, president of the

Citizens' Council on Health Care, a St. group that opposes government

intrusion in medicine.

But in his decision, Klein found only one problem in the rule. He said it was

" impermissibly vague " in defining what would constitute identifying information

that would have to be encrypted.

But overall, he said, the Health Department had gone " well beyond the minimal

efforts " to protect against disclosure of sensitive information. He noted that

44 other states collect this type of information. However, Minnesota officials

have said their proposal is more ambitious than most.

Advocates say the database will help researchers study strengths and weaknesses

in the health care system. They will be able to tell, for example, whether

diabetics get more frequent checkups (and thus better care) in some parts of the

state, or whether some racial groups or regions have higher rates of illness

than

others.

Those studies, they say, can help communities identify ways to improve care.

Under the rule, the department will start collecting the data in January 2004

from the billing records of all Minnesota hospitals. Eventually, it would cover

all doctor visits by patients in most health plans. Only the smallest health

insurers would be exempt.

The department has also said it would appoint a " data steward " to ensure that

all patient data are handled properly.

Klein, in his ruling, said he recognized that opponents would not be satisfied.

>> " They do not want their data to leave the doctor's office without their

consent

under any conditions, " <<he wrote. " It is not possible to resolve all the points

of view expressed . . .

****AND this is a BASIC right of privacy, it is called doctor patient

confidentiality!!!

Even the insured patient has this right. I have never even felt the employer

should

be involved in helping processing claims, simply acknowledge the the employee

does indeed have the coverage.

" Those people who just fundamentally disagree with the Legislature's choice must

address their arguments to the Legislature. "

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