Technology - Privacy Issues with Web-Based Medical Information

The benefits of genetic science for society is for employers who want to know if their employers are in excellent working condition and if the worker will cause them more money when obtaining health insurance. If an employer hires someone that that is healthy then the cost of health insurance does not rise and the employee will not have to downgrade their health insurance plan so that they can accommodate the employee that is not healthy. The limitations of genetic science for society are the possibility of genetic testing causing safety issues at work, the development of a genetic low class, the breach of privilege and confidentiality, and the utilization of genetic bias to excuse different methods of discrimination (Krumm, 2002).

The privacy portion of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 is a substantial portion of the law that has indeed gained the most attention and had the widest impacts – more so even than the insurance portability portion. The rules that make up the privacy piece of the law are intended to protect patients from having information about their medical history and medical care released to anyone that doesn’t have a right to know. The Security Rule supports the Privacy Rule in how it affects technological advances in healthcare – specifically, electronic medical records: Electronic Medical Records or Electronic Health Records (EMR’s or EHR’s, respectively). The Breach Notification Rule supports patients’ privacy not only by mandating reporting to

It is essential that health care researchers and/or managers abide by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPPA) before sharing any patient health information to the public. The Privacy Rule under HIPPA will permit the sharing of health information without patient permission for payment, treating, and health care operations, and other specified purposes (Koontz, 2015). In addition, the Security Rule under HIPPA is designed to ensure that patient health information is protected from the unauthorized disclosure and access (Koontz, 2015). After all, the increase in health information technology makes it easier for researchers to obtain patient health data (Largent, Joffe, & Miller, 2011). However, the health care researcher

Protecting the privacy of patient information is one of the top priorities of all healthcare providers and is specifically required by various state and federal laws. On February 17, 2009 the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA, sometimes referred to as “the stimulus”) included provisions making significant improvement in the privacy and security standards for health information was signed into law by the federal government (http://www.hpsafind.hrsa.gov). Included in this law is $19.2 Billion which is intended to be used to increase the use of Electronic Health Records (EHR) by physicians and hospitals; this portion of the bill is called, the Health

This journal entry is a reflection of research on the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA). Enacted by Congress in 1996, HIPPA was created to “modernize health information exchange” (Solove, 2013). For the consumer, HIPPA sets rules which protect the privacy of health information, to be followed by health care providers and insurance companies. It also gives consumers rights over their health information, such as obtaining a copy, making sure it is accurate, and to know who is or has seen their health information (Office for Civil Rights, n.d.). The modernization of health information exchange, came out of a concern as technology advanced, and computer data bases were now collecting personal health information.

As the number and availability of various genetic tests have grown, so too has a fear among Americans that their genetic information may be used for purposes other than curing or preventing diseases. This paper looks at the law Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act passed in 2008 and how it influences the workplace and the health insurance practices.

Security breaches of EMRs vary from someone without consent viewing the patient’s information, to a hacker using the information to steal one’s identity. According to Privacy Rights Clearing House, more than 260 million data breaches have occurred in the United States, including those of health related records. Approximately 12 percent of data breaches involve medical organizations (Gellman, 2012). According to Redspin, a provider of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act risk analysis and IT security assessment services, more than 6 million individual’s health records were compromised during a period from August 2009 and December 2010 (Author Unknown, 2010). A provision of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act requires all breaches affecting 500 or more people to be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services. This reporting is to be accomplished within 60 days of discovery. The Redspin report covering the period above involved 225 breaches of protected health information. The amount of people with access to an individual’s health record creates concern with confidentiality. According to the Los Angeles

Therefore, in 2008, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act prohibit discrimination on the basis of genetic information with respect to health insurance and employment. Employer cannot refuse to hire, or to discharge, any employee because of genetic information. In addition, it is unlawful to request, require or purchase genetic information of the employee (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2008). However, even with genetic non-discrimination legislation, mutation carriers may find themselves ineligible for life insurance and other long-term

Predictive genetic testing has the potential to be the basis of discrimination, as it could give employers a reason not to hire and insurers a reason not to insure (Wilde et al., 2013, p. 271). Another major concern is that it could cause a loss of privacy of personal genetic data if employers and/or insurers were given the results of the genetic testing (Wilde et al., 2013, p. 271).

The use of telemedicine is becoming an integral part of health care. With continuing success of telemedicine programs within specialty areas such a cardiology and dermatology, telemedicine and the use of the internet will continue to grow. This growth, however, has the potential to cause privacy risks. It is up to each institution providing this service to make sure there are security safeguards in place and have strategic plans to ensure its effectiveness.

In a world full of electronics it would only seem logical to have health records electronic. Not only are medical records efficient, reliable, and quick to access, new technology allow patients to access their own personal medical records with a simple to use login and password. “People are asking whether any kind of electronic records can be made safe. If one is looking for a 100% privacy guarantee, the answer is no”(Thede, 2010). At my hospital, upon every admission we ask the patient for a password for friends and family to have to have if they would like an update on the patient 's condition. We do not let visitors come up and see the patient without the patient 's consent. In doing these things, we help to ensure the safety and protection of the patient 's health information and privacy.

Privacy and confidentiality are basic rights in our society. Safeguarding those rights, with respect to an individual’s personal health information, is our ethical and legal obligation as health care providers. Doing so in today’s health care environment is increasingly challenging (OJIN, 2005).

The correlation of increased potential patient rights violations and sensitive personal health data among electronic medical records than paper records is growing at an alarming rate. An estimated 52,000 public comments was reviewed by the Department of Health and Human Services requiring privacy regulations governing individually identifiable health information since the passage of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1966 (HIPPA). The individually identifiable health information includes demographic data that relates to the individuals past, present, or future physical or mental health condition. In addition, the provision of health care rights of the individual, confidentiality, protection of

     Abstract:  This paper describes the ethical implications of developing a national online medical database.  Such a database would contain the lifetime health records of every U.S. resident by combining information from a variety of sources.  The advantages of such a system are many, but in the end, the question remains whether patients want to trade privacy for better healthcare.

“A genetic test can reveal that a person who is otherwise healthy has a higher risk at some point in the future of being unable to work, or requiring extensive medical care, or otherwise being more predisposed to an adverse state of health” (Ahwaz Chagani & Philippe Michaud). Such personal information regarding someone’s health can in turn affect their employment and insurance policies. Genetic testing has its advantages and disadvantages towards the insurance industry and its stakeholders. It greatly affects the insurance industry as they are not allowed to know about one’s genetic information as the Genetic Non-Discrimination Act prohibits that. The impact on stakeholders is that it is advantageous to policyholders and in turn disadvantageous to shareholders and brokers and agents.