----- Original Message -----
Sent: Monday, April 14, 2003 3:58 PM

ALLIANCE FOR HUMAN RESEARCH PROTECTION (AHRP)
http://www.ahrp.org

At least one professional physicians' association, the Association of
American Physicians & Surgeons (AAPS), is taking a stand to protect
patients' right to medical confidentiality. The public is unaware that new
federal regulations--authorized under the Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA)--take affect today. These mislabeled
regulations masquerade as patient protection of privacy, while they in fact,
eliminate patient consent / aurhorization requirements. HIPAA regulations
allow disclosure of personal medical records to just about anyone who claims
to engage in "health care operations."

The Alliance for Human Research Protection (AHRP) strongly supports the AAPS
opposition to HIPAA and supports patients'  right to say NO to disclosure of
medical records. Here's how to protect your privacy:

Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, Inc.
A Voice for Private Physicians Since 1943
Omnia pro aegroto
1601 N. Tucson Blvd. Suite 9
Tucson, AZ 85716-3450
Phone: (800) 635-1196
Hotline: (800) 419-4777

Print this page, sign and give to your doctor, dentist, therapist,
chiropractor and all others who keep your medical files.

Patient Request for Non-Disclosure of Medical Records
I, ___________________________, hereby assert my constitutional right to
privacy and expressly forbid my physician, and anyone acting under his or
her control, from releasing any of my medical records to a third party
without my express consent.

In particular, I decline to consent to the release of my medical records for
the purpose of entry into a computer database which may be accessed by third
parties outside of the offices or hospitals utilized by my physician.

__________________________________________________ Signature __________Date

__________________________________________________ Address

____________________________City ____________ State ____________________Zip

[ URL FOR ABOVE DOCUMENT:
http://www.aapsonline.org/confiden/patientadvisory.htm ]

-----Original Message-----
Association of American Physicians & Surgeons
Contact: Kathryn
Serkes   202.333.3855   [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
April 10, 2003
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Patients Will Need Miranda Warning Under New "Privacy" Rules Rules Start
April 14, But Security Still 2 Years Away

Washington, D.C. -- The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons is
running print and web ads across the country warning patients that after
Monday, April 14, they may need to take extreme steps to protect their
medical privacy.

The ads are in response to new federal privacy regulations that go into
effect on April 14, and feature a doctor gagged with a surgical mask warning
patients, "You have the right to remain silent.  Anything you say can and
will be used against you."

The so-called "privacy" regulations, authorized under the Health Insurance
Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), eliminate patient
consent for disclosure of their medical records.

"While masquerading as patient protection, the rules would actually
eliminate any last shred of confidentiality and risk lives," said Kathryn A.
Serkes, AAPS Public Affairs Counsel.

Serkes explained that quality of patient care is dependant on free
communication between patient and physician.  "Our survey of doctors shows
that anticipation of these regulations has chilled patients' willingness to
open up."  The survey shows that 87 percent have been asked by patients to
lie or keep information out of their records.

Further, the regulations allow almost unlimited access to patient records by
government employees, law enforcement, insurance employees, and even
marketers if they call their activities "health care operations."

"The frontline defense for medical privacy always has been the patient's
right to give or withhold consent to how his records are used and who sees
them.  These rules throw that out the window," said Serkes.

Under the privacy rules, patients must rely on government security rules to
protect their records.  But there's a catch ­ the security rules don't take
effect for two more years.  Even the government databases, such as Medicare,
aren't secure yet.

"It's like buying an alarm system for your home, but not turning it on yet,"
said Serkes.  "The privacy regulations should be delayed at least two years
until the security protections are in place."

AAPS is circulating a petition to patients through physician offices, asking
them to support AAPS efforts to delay the regulations.  They also have a
lawsuit pending to overturn the privacy regulations.
***
The ads and petition are at
http://www.aapsonline.org/

AAPS is a non-partisan, dues-supported professional association of
physicians in all specialties, dedicated since 1943 to protection of the
patient-physician relationship.