A Win for Patient Privacy

***STATEMENT***

For Immediate Release
April 5, 2016

CONTACT:
Deborah Hamilton, Hamilton Strategies, 215.815.7716, 610.584.1096, ext. 102, or Beth Harrison, 610.584.1096, ext. 104, Media@HamiltonStrategies.com

A Win for Patient Privacy

Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom Applauds News That 

Troubling Language About Private Patient Data in House’s 21^st

Century Cures Act Doesn’t Appear in Senate Mark-Up Tomorrow

ST. PAUL, Minn.—Politico is reporting today that a little-talked about section of the House-passed 21st Century Cures Act (H.R.6) appears dead in the Senate. The House language would allow “HIPAA-protected information to be shared with researchers.”

Today, Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom (CCHF, www.cchfreedom.org) is applauding the fact that this section is not included in any of the bills be marked up tomorrow by the Senate HELP Committee. CCHF has previously met with the committee to discuss their concerns on the language.   

“We are pleased with the Politico announcement today that the HIPAA research section of the 21st Century Cures Act appears to be dead in the Senate HELP Committee’s bills,” said Twila Brase, co-founder and president of CCHF. “Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom has long expressed our strong concerns about this section of the House bill because of its implications for patient privacy, patient rights and personal control of medical decisions. 

“Section 1124 defines ‘health data research’ as part of ‘health care operations,’” she continued. “The HIPAA definition of ‘health care operations’ is already 390-words long, including all sorts of access by business associates for innumerable activities of which patients are completely unaware. Under HIPAA, unless a stronger state law intervenes, such as in our home state of Minnesota, there are no patient consent requirements for any uses and disclosures under ‘health care operations,’ nor are there any requirements for accounting of these disclosures to the subjects of the data—the patients.

“The House bill is troubling because it attempts to give covered entities—health plan corporations, hospitals, clinics, clinicians, data clearinghouses—and their business associates broad access to private patient medical records for analyses and studies without patient consent,” Brase concluded. “It also specifically states that this data sharing may happen even though one or the other have no relationship to the patient. This is a violation of patient rights, privacy rights and human subject rights. We applaud the news that the U.S. Senate does not appear to have this troubling language in its companion bills related to the House Cures Act. We ask that the Senate continue to refuse to accept the House’s Section 1124.”

Brase discusses headline-making health care issues on CCHF’s daily one-minute radio feature “Health Freedom Minute.” Heard on almost 400 stations nationwide, including nearly 200 on the American Family Radio Network and 100 on the Bott Radio Network, “Health Freedom Minute” helps listeners learn more about the agenda behind health care initiatives, as well as steps they can take to protect their health care choices, rights and privacy. The 60-second program is free for stations to run; for details, contact Michael Hamilton at mhamilton@hamiltonstrategies.com or (610) 584-1096 or (215) 519-4838.

For more information about CCHF, visit its web site at www.cchfreedom.org, its Facebook page at www.facebook.com/cchfreedom or its Twitter feed, @CCHFreedom.

Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom, a patient-centered national health freedom organization based in St. Paul, Minn., exists to protect health care choices, individualized patient care, and medical and genetic privacy rights. CCHF sponsors the daily, 60-second radio feature, Health Freedom Minute, which airs on approximately 400 stations nationwide, including nearly 200 on the American Family Radio Network and 100 on the Bott Radio Network. Listeners can learn more about the agenda behind health care initiatives and​ steps they can take to protect their health care choices, rights and privacy. 

CCHF president and co-founder Twila Brase, R.N., has been called one of the “100 Most Powerful People in Health Care” and one of “Minnesota’s 100 Most Influential Health Care Leaders.” A public health nurse, Brase has been interviewed by CNN, Fox News, Minnesota Public Radio, NBC Nightly News, NBC’s Today Show, NPR, New York Public Radio, the Associated Press, Modern Healthcare, TIME, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and The Washington Times, among others. She is at the forefront of informing the public of crucial health issues, such as intrusive wellness and prevention initiatives in Obamacare, patient privacy, informed consent, the dangers of “evidence-based medicine” and the implications of state and federal health care reform.

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For more information or to interview Twila Brase, president and co-founder of Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom, contact Deborah Hamilton at 215-815-7716 or 610-584-1096, or Beth Harrison at 610-584-1096, Media@HamiltonStrategies.com.

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