The Honorable Tommy G. Thompson
Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services
Attention: Privacy I
Room 801
Hubert H. Humphrey Building
200 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20201
Dear Mr. Secretary:
You have asked for public comments on the final medical privacy regulation published by HHS last December. I strongly urge you not to delay or weaken federal privacy protections.
I believe it is essential that the federal government finalize rules to protect patient privacy. In the absence of legal safeguards, new technology allows for virtually unlimited access to medical records without patient consent. Privacy in health care is important because medical records may contain sensitive information, and the doctor-patient relationship is built on trust.
The medical privacy regulation published by HHS last year establishes in federal law for the first time that medical information belongs to the patient and should not be disclosed without consent. It also gives patients the right to inspect and correct their own records. Please do not take away these important privacy rights.
Once again, I urge you not to delay or weaken the medical privacy regulation and to permit it to become effective in April. If changes are to be considered, I support strengthening privacy protections by limiting access to medical records by law enforcement agents and marketers. But in any event I oppose efforts to delay or weaken the regulation.
Thank you for considering my views.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Hebert
151 Thatcher Way
310 Thatcher
Amherst, MA 01003
