American Public Media's "Future Tense" on Thursday included a discussion about medical privacy laws and accidental disclosure of electronic health records.
Janlori Goldman, director of the Health Privacy Project at Georgetown University, said federal medical privacy laws provide strong protections but have not been adequately enforced.
Goldman also discussed:
- The frequency of medical records breaches;
- Ways in which medical records can be made public; and
- How breaches can impact patients.
Susan McAndrew of the HHS Office of Civil Rights said that the agency has the authority under federal medical privacy laws to impose civil penalties for breaches but such penalties are unnecessary in most cases (Gordon, "Future Tense," American Public Media, 5/24).
Audio of the segment is
available online.