-------- Original Message -------- Subject: Texas Atty Genl "rejects" strong federal medical-privacy law Date: Sun, 29 Feb 2004 16:03:47 -0800 From: Jim Warren <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: Dave Farber:;, Declan McCullagh <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> References: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
An interesting clash between (1) open-government vs. personal-privacy, and (2) state's rights vs. federal authority. --jim
At 12:34 PM -0800 2/29/04, pmarshall <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> posted to [EMAIL PROTECTED]:
TEXAS AG SAYS NO TO HIPAA: Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott ruled Friday that the state's public information law takes precedence over a far-reaching federal medical privacy law, a legal opinion he called the strongest in the nation.
His decision means Texas media outlets and individuals will have access to public information that some hospitals and authorities have declined to release under the Federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, known as HIPAA.
"In Texas, government records are presumed open unless a specific exception applies. HIPAA is not an exception to the rule of openness in the state of Texas," Abbott told the board of directors of the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas at The Associated Press' Dallas bureau, where he released his legal opinion.
HIPAA, a sweeping overhaul of the federal health care privacy laws that took effect in April, has frustrated journalists and others who have found most basic information hard to come by.
"What this means is, governmental bodies who've been using HIPAA as a shield just lost that protection," Abbott said.
Abbott said Texas authorities worked closely on the language of the ruling with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which created the privacy regulations under the law. Still, he said, he wouldn't be surprised if the ruling were challenged in court.
http://www.dfw.com/mld/startelegram/news/state/7950211.htm
[FOI Advocate]
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