2y ago

Privacy concerns arise as state attorneys general seek access to out-of-state medical records

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Privacy concerns arise as state attorneys general seek access to out-of-state medical records - WABE

From WABE Politics News:

A Georgia law banning abortion roughly at six weeks of pregnancy was put into place earlier in the year. Georgia’s law also prohibits gender-affirming surgery and hormone replacement therapy for transgender […]

The post Privacy concerns arise as state attorneys general seek access to out-of-state medical records appeared first on WABE.

1 comments

"This proposal has been met with opposition from Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr and 18 other state attorneys general. In June, they signed a letter to U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra, saying the rule would prevent law enforcement from protecting women who become crime victims."
The drawback to this policy has nothing to do with crime... the drawback is that it hinders health care providers' ability to provide health care. Focusing on it as a matter of concern in a criminal context is simply telegraphing that you want access to medical records as a means of collecting evidence rather than a matter of healthcare.
The answer is fairly simple actually, just strengthen the requirements for law enforcement to access HIPAA protected information. Strengthen the requirements to get a warrant for anything whatsoever, really...
These people are going to hinder follow up care n an attempt to enforce local laws beyond local scope, and the "virtual fencing" between states proposed at federal level isn't going to do anything at all to address the hindrance of effective care, it addresses the attempted enforcement and that's it.