National Records Group Supports Medical Information Act - Medical Information Protection Act - Government Activity - Brief Article

Health Management Technology, July, 1999

In June 1999 Industry Watch, HMT reported on AHIMA's concerns about two proposed bills that address security of medical information. A new bill, The Medical Information Protection Act (MIPA), introduced by Senator Robert Bennett (R-UT), has been endorsed by AHIMA. In their view, the bill includes several provisions that "will go a long way toward protecting patient information," says Linda L. Kloss, RRA, AHIMA executive vice president and CEO.

According to AHIMA, MIPA's most important provisions and the reason they're important include:

* Preemption of state confidentiality laws. Federal legislation should produce a single national standard for handling patient records. By preempting current state confidentiality laws, MIPA would create strong national standards that patients could understand and healthcare providers could follow.

* Treating all health information the same. Employing unique methods for handling various kinds of health information, such as mental health and genetic information, while perhaps well intended, in the end makes health information more vulnerable.

* Patient access to their records. MIPA would give patients the right to see and obtain copies of their records as well as ensure their accuracy.

* Patient consent for disclosures to third parties. Third parties, such as marketers, database developers, and the like, would be able to gain access to information only if patients give their consent beforehand.

For a summary of MIPA or a matrix comparing current confidentiality bills, call Jack Segal, AHIMA's director of Public Relations, at 312-573-8505 or e-mail him at jsegal@ahima.org.