The Canadian Privacy Law Blog: Developments in privacy law and writings of a Canadian privacy lawyer, containing information related to the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (aka PIPEDA) and other Canadian and international laws.

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The author of this blog, David T.S. Fraser, is a Canadian privacy lawyer who practices with the firm of McInnes Cooper. He is the author of the Physicians' Privacy Manual. He has a national and international practice advising corporations and individuals on matters related to Canadian privacy laws.

For full contact information and a brief bio, please see David's profile.

Please note that I am only able to provide legal advice to clients. I am not able to provide free legal advice. Any unsolicited information sent to David Fraser cannot be considered to be solicitor-client privileged.

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The views expressed herein are solely the author's and should not be attributed to his employer or clients. Any postings on legal issues are provided as a public service, and do not constitute solicitation or provision of legal advice. The author makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained herein or linked to. Nothing herein should be used as a substitute for the advice of competent counsel.

This web site is presented for informational purposes only. These materials do not constitute legal advice and do not create a solicitor-client relationship between you and David T.S. Fraser. If you are seeking specific advice related to Canadian privacy law or PIPEDA, contact the author, David T.S. Fraser.

Tuesday, September 07, 2004

Editorial: HIPAA horror stories 

The Carroll County Star Tribune (Arkansas) has an editorial that rails against the impact of HIPAA on the ability of community newspapers to report on the comings and goings of hospital patients and the ability of police to track down missing persons. Desipte its conclusion, it doesn't really deal with the impact of HIPAA on quality of care:

"Privacy is certainly a good thing, in this age of information technology which threatens our most basic rights, but when heavy-handed laws are enacted which impede the delivery of medical care, we wonder - isn't it time to revisit these laws and repeal those that are obviously not in the best interest of either our health or our privacy?"

Thanks to SANS PrivacyBits for the pointer, which also points to a similar-toned editorial from The Lohnotan Valley News (Fallon, NV):

Consider the case of a California man who died recently after coming down with West Nile virus, the mosquito-borne disease that has been spreading like wildfire in northern Nevada. Citing privacy laws, county health officials would not disclose the nature of the man's disease - even to his brother - until after the patient died. The brother was outraged because he didn't know the man was in a potentially life-threatening situation, but at least his brother's confidentiality wasn't breached.

What started out as a noble attempt to ensure that people who changed jobs didn't automatically lose their health insurance somehow morphed in Congress when senators Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Nancy Kassebaum (R-Kan.) got a hold of it.

Not surprisingly, a movement to repeal this ill-conceived legislation is gaining momentum; the sooner the better as far as we're concerned.

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