Can My Personal Health Records Be Leaked Like A Celebrity? | Patient Resources | MedicalRecords.com
The privacy of personal health records is protected under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996. One right granted to patients under HIPAA is the right to require permission to release of medical records. This provision makes it illegal for health care providers to disclose personal medical records without prior written consent. However, that does not mean leaks do not happen for some high-profile figures.
Recently, there have been several personal health record scandals involving celebrities who have had their medical records leaked to the public. Victims of this unauthorized release of medical records include Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, George Clooney, Paris Hilton, Rush Limbaugh and Britney Spears.
Medical records contain a lot of personal health information and in today’s gossip obsessed culture, this release of medical information can be a treasure trove for tabloids. However, breaches of HIPAA do not only involve leaks to the press. Anyone accessing medical records and looking over medical files without authorization are in violation of HIPAA regulations.
Breaches to Personal Health Records
A 2008 state report found that over 120 employees of the UCLA medical Center in Los Angeles had viewed the medical records of celebrities without authorization between 2004 and 2006. The crackdown during that time led to numerous warnings, employment terminations, and hefty fines. In 2009, Kaiser Permanente’s Bellflower hospital was fined $437,500 for breaches to the personal health records of Nadya Suleman, a mother of octuplets.
Everyone in the medical field is required to have to be informed of HIPAA privacy requirements, and many companies have additional rules in place to protect patient privacy. However, the temptation of learning about a celebrity’s personal health record is in many cases too hard to resist. Non-celebrities can feel more assured of medical record confidentiality.
Electronic Patient Records Might Help
“Medical privacy is a fundamental right,” Kathleen Billingsley of the California department of Public Health told the Los Angeles Times. “Every Californian treated at a hospital should not have to worry about who is viewing their medical information.”
Proponents of electronic medical records and electronic health records (EMR/EHR) technology say that electronic patient records could help prevent leaks.
With paper health records, almost anyone can look at a record without leaving a trace. Electronic patient record systems can control access to medical records by limiting user authorization. They also have the potential to provide an audit trail of all users who have accessed a specific medical record. This transparency, proponents say, would provide a significant deterrent to leaks.
As always, patients should talk with their doctors to learn the specific patient privacy measures at their practice.
TAKEAWAYS
Under HIPAA, unauthorized disclosure of patient medical information is illegal.
The personal health records of public figures are sometimes accessed without authorization due to the ease of sneaking a peek at paper medical records.
Widespread implementation of EMR/EHRs could provide privacy benefits by tracking all access to medical records.
It is important patients talk to their doctor, so they know the security measures in place to protect their personal health records.