One thing promoted by this healthcare plan is a system in which all of your medical info is available with the click of a button so that no matter where you are in the country, you can get immediate and appropriate attention in an emergency. Those using this info for any other purpose will be doing so in violation of rules as described.Why do I care if my wife’s joint replacement surgeries or my cornea transplant are available to doctors as long as they are protected from misuse by employers or others? Mental health issues can be more sensitive, but still, if you can sue a company who illegally collects data on people, why be so concerned? Facebook and twitter seem to be much more liable to violate your privacy.Curiously,C.
Regarding your first post, how do you think that will be any different than it has been since 2002? The Patriot Act gave the government that power, not Obamacare. All of our personal data is already open to anyone with the knowhow. I know how much you like to criticize Obama, but do you believe your privacy rights will somehow magically reappear under a Republican president? During GWB’s administration, we lost what was left of those rights to not just the NSA and CIA, but to the bankers and corporations, who are allowed to access everything from your credit score, arrest records, employment history, and medical history whenever they see fit. Obamacare is less of a concern if it means my wife will get the proper treatment if she needs an ambulance.
“Yet you are willing to give the government your information?”
I have been a practicing optometrist for over 30 years. I follow all the laws I know of. I have not turned over any info to the government, nor have I been asked (required) to do so.
It is true that there will be statistical analyses. It is also true that any information available can be abused. And it is also true that the government is only one group of people who can abuse your information.
Right now, this information is staying within doctors’ offices. But I cannot wait for the day when I can see patient records from other doctors’ offices. You can’t imagine the number of people who have no idea the names of the meds they take. How can I ensure that I’m not putting them at risk by adding another needed medication if I can’t be aware of potential drug interactions? I can request info from other docs, but this does not guarantee when the info will arrive, assuming it ever will. And electronic records eliminate handwriting issues as well.
Of course laws will be broken. That’s why we have them, and we have penalties for breaking them. The more knowledge, the more responsibility. Security will always be an issue, and it is our responsibility as citizens to be diligent.
Also, keep in mind that although I have to ask sensitive questions, patients are not required to answer, and if their answers are sensitive enough, I am not required to record them. (In that case, I advise the patient of this, and recommend the patient enter into similar arrangements with their other docs.)
“But it is supposedly including more than just healthcare info…”
The key word here is “supposedly”. At the present time, almost everything I am required to ask about is health care related. The rest is stuff that seems unrelated to anything at all. (Example: were you the first born in your family; if not, what is your birth order?) And, as mentioned in another post of mine, the patient does not have to answer.
And, no, there are no requirements for me to ask how many guns you have.
“Anyone’s total data may reside fragmented and dispersed in many files and locations…….In Obama Care it is in Total, Complete and nicely packaged ready for misuse.”It’s already like that. Obamacare will not make a difference. That’s just a right wing red herring. Every bank you deal with, every employer you’ve had, every company or institution you give your SS# to, has access to all of your information now. Don’t believe the hype that Obamacare is the first.
“Wanna know what website your husband’s on right now?” “Sure”“GoComics…..the editorial cartoons section”“WHAT?!?!?!? WHY THAT NO GOOD, STINKING, AWFUL … I WANT A DIVORCE”We all see it coming don’t we?
You think of yourself as a “Moderate?”Wow, that’s a classic example of skewing the scale severely to the right.I guess by your logic, I too could claim to be a “Moderate,” which would make Obama a “Conservative” and Newt Gingrich to the right of Der Fuhrer.
chazandru almost 11 years ago
One thing promoted by this healthcare plan is a system in which all of your medical info is available with the click of a button so that no matter where you are in the country, you can get immediate and appropriate attention in an emergency. Those using this info for any other purpose will be doing so in violation of rules as described.Why do I care if my wife’s joint replacement surgeries or my cornea transplant are available to doctors as long as they are protected from misuse by employers or others? Mental health issues can be more sensitive, but still, if you can sue a company who illegally collects data on people, why be so concerned? Facebook and twitter seem to be much more liable to violate your privacy.Curiously,C.
Fourcrows almost 11 years ago
Regarding your first post, how do you think that will be any different than it has been since 2002? The Patriot Act gave the government that power, not Obamacare. All of our personal data is already open to anyone with the knowhow. I know how much you like to criticize Obama, but do you believe your privacy rights will somehow magically reappear under a Republican president? During GWB’s administration, we lost what was left of those rights to not just the NSA and CIA, but to the bankers and corporations, who are allowed to access everything from your credit score, arrest records, employment history, and medical history whenever they see fit. Obamacare is less of a concern if it means my wife will get the proper treatment if she needs an ambulance.
I Play One On TV almost 11 years ago
“Yet you are willing to give the government your information?”
I have been a practicing optometrist for over 30 years. I follow all the laws I know of. I have not turned over any info to the government, nor have I been asked (required) to do so.
It is true that there will be statistical analyses. It is also true that any information available can be abused. And it is also true that the government is only one group of people who can abuse your information.
Right now, this information is staying within doctors’ offices. But I cannot wait for the day when I can see patient records from other doctors’ offices. You can’t imagine the number of people who have no idea the names of the meds they take. How can I ensure that I’m not putting them at risk by adding another needed medication if I can’t be aware of potential drug interactions? I can request info from other docs, but this does not guarantee when the info will arrive, assuming it ever will. And electronic records eliminate handwriting issues as well.
Of course laws will be broken. That’s why we have them, and we have penalties for breaking them. The more knowledge, the more responsibility. Security will always be an issue, and it is our responsibility as citizens to be diligent.
Also, keep in mind that although I have to ask sensitive questions, patients are not required to answer, and if their answers are sensitive enough, I am not required to record them. (In that case, I advise the patient of this, and recommend the patient enter into similar arrangements with their other docs.)
I Play One On TV almost 11 years ago
“But it is supposedly including more than just healthcare info…”
The key word here is “supposedly”. At the present time, almost everything I am required to ask about is health care related. The rest is stuff that seems unrelated to anything at all. (Example: were you the first born in your family; if not, what is your birth order?) And, as mentioned in another post of mine, the patient does not have to answer.
And, no, there are no requirements for me to ask how many guns you have.
Fourcrows almost 11 years ago
“Anyone’s total data may reside fragmented and dispersed in many files and locations…….In Obama Care it is in Total, Complete and nicely packaged ready for misuse.”It’s already like that. Obamacare will not make a difference. That’s just a right wing red herring. Every bank you deal with, every employer you’ve had, every company or institution you give your SS# to, has access to all of your information now. Don’t believe the hype that Obamacare is the first.
Kylop almost 11 years ago
“Wanna know what website your husband’s on right now?” “Sure”“GoComics…..the editorial cartoons section”“WHAT?!?!?!? WHY THAT NO GOOD, STINKING, AWFUL … I WANT A DIVORCE”We all see it coming don’t we?
Hawthorne almost 11 years ago
“The IRS was responding to a whole bunch of new filings brought about by the Bush Court’s majority ruling in Citizens’ United.”
True, that.
The real IRS scandal has been swept neatly under the rug.
http://tinyurl.com/omkbqho
Special interests get special treatment …
McSpook almost 11 years ago
You think of yourself as a “Moderate?”Wow, that’s a classic example of skewing the scale severely to the right.I guess by your logic, I too could claim to be a “Moderate,” which would make Obama a “Conservative” and Newt Gingrich to the right of Der Fuhrer.