Sometimes you should just say “I pass”
Choose carefully or you may not be able to choose who else uses
your personal health information.
YOU “GOTTA” KNOW:
- PHRs are not considered legal medical records. Currently there are no protections for your health information under state law, federal law or medical ethics. No law ensures the information in your PHR will be kept private and confidential.
- DON’T even think about using a PHR offered by an employer or insurer. These are the last people with which you want to share all your personal health and daily activities.
- Don’t simply rely on a “HIPAA compliant” PHR. HIPAA has more loop holes than the tax law; millions of businesses can legally access your information without your consent.
YOU “GOTTA” ASK:
- Does the PHR provider have the rights to own your information?
- Does the PHR provider have the right under its “agreements” to take sell or share your information?
- What security does the PHR provide?
- What physical and technical measures are in place to prevent identity theft?
- How do you authorize access to the information? If it does not require more than a password, say “no thanks”.
If you cannot easily find the answers to these questions, you “gotta” move on! Nothing is more personal or private than your health information. An unprotected PHR will be a goldmine for insurers, employers, marketers and identity thieves. In the wrong hands, your personal health information could really hurt you, your family and generations to come.
For more information you can check out Altarum's Review of the Personal Health Record (PHR) Service Provider Market: Privacy and Security. Altarum conducted this review of PHRs and their privacy policies, at the request of the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), "to understand what is currently being stated, where improvements could be made, and what outstanding areas of uncertainty still exist around privacy concerns."
Ryan Howard, the CEO of Practice Fusion which is one of many PHRs available today, states very clearly the way your information is handled. "Every healthcare vendor is selling data. Everyone has this data, but we'll have more of it, and it will be real time aggregated." You can view the article from Healthcare IT News.