Database Collection of Death Information Not Public Record

April 21, 2024admin

Database Collection of Death Information Not Public Record

State health department can limit cause of death information sought through public records requests.

A statewide database of dead Ohioans with the names and addresses associated with the causes of death is not available to the public via a public records request because it contains “protected health information,” the Supreme Court of Ohio ruled today.

In a 5-2 decision, the Supreme Court rejected the claim of former Columbus Dispatch Reporter Randy Ludlow, who sought the cause-of-death information from the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The department provided Ludlow with requested spreadsheets with vital information from death certificates, including sex, age, and cause of death, but not the names and addresses of those who died.

Writing for the Court majority, Justice Patrick F. Fischer stated the department correctly determined that the names and addresses, when combined with the other medical information, would constitute protected health information. Under R.C. 3701.17, the department is prohibited from releasing that information.

The Court disagreed with Ludlow’s claim that R.C. 3701.17 protects the information of the living and that the health information of deceased Ohioans is not protected.

“However, we see no reason to limit the definition of ‘individual’ to ‘living individual’ when the statute does not make that distinction,” Justice Fischer wrote.

Chief Justice Sharon L. Kennedy and Justices R. Patrick DeWine, Melody Stewart, and Joseph T. Deters joined Justice Fischer’s opinion.

In a dissenting opinion, Justice Jennifer Brunner wrote that information provided by local health departments to ODH’s database must be a public record, because under another state law, anyone can obtain the entire death record by visiting the local vital records department.

“In short, under R.C. 3705.231, all that is

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Health Information

March 28, 2024admin

Surgical procedure information added to MySaskHealth record

Saskatchewan patients have even more of their own health information at their fingertips with the addition of a new Surgical Procedures feature on MySaskHealthRecord accounts.

The feature is a first in Canada and with its introduction, anyone with an account can now see information about upcoming surgeries, including:

* Scheduled procedure date

* Specialist/surgeon’s name

* Procedure name(s)

* Procedure location

* Status of procedure

Accounts will also contain information about surgical procedures performed from 2018 onwards.

“MySaskHealthRecord puts important personal health information literally in the palm of a patient’s hand,” Mental Health and Addictions, Seniors and Rural and Remote Health Minister Tim McLeod said. “Saskatchewan continues to lead in allowing patients to access their own personal health information in an easy-to-use format. I’m happy to say that we’re the first province to make information about upcoming surgical procedures available to patients through their online health record.”

The Surgical Procedures feature will be accessible online and via the app for anyone who has a MySaskHealthRecord account. Patients awaiting surgery should already be able to see information about their upcoming procedures. Patients can also sign up for push notifications, alerting them to information.

“When patients like me can access medical information, it lets us become active participants in our own health care and reduces the anxiety that can come from not knowing,” Patient Family Partner Wendy Kopciuch said. “Having access to information about upcoming surgical procedures means I can have informed conversations with my health care team, and also arrange my personal and professional life to accommodate my surgery date.”

“Well-informed patients are better prepared for appointments with their health care providers and can be more directly involved in decisions impacting their surgical procedures,” Provincial Department Head of Surgery for the Saskatchewan Health Authority Dr. Michael Kelly said. “When patients can

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Health Information

January 20, 2024admin

A new online health record is coming — from the same place you get your driver’s licence

A screen shot of a virtual health app. — MyHealthNL will launch on Feb. 1. Access will be given to 5,000 patients with groups of 50,000 more following each month after. (Government of Newfoundland and Labrador)

Newfoundland and Labrador is launching a new online service to improve access to the province’s health-care system, with residents able to find out details of their care without having to call a doctor’s office.

Starting in February, about 5,000 patients over 16 will be able to access their own personal health records through MyGovNL — the same service where people can access motor registration to renew their licence, for example.

MyGovNL — coined MyHealthNL for the health-care aspect — will now give access to laboratory results, dispensed medications, radiology reports and allergies.

In addition, residents can also access mental health and health information resources.

An active MCP card is required, along with a valid driver’s licence or ID from the Motor Registration Division.

“Starting in the spring, we anticipate another 50,000 people will be added each month,” Health Minister Tom Osborne told reporters on Wednesday, adding about 300,000 people already use MyGovNL.

“The new service will help reduce administrative burdens for physicians and primary care providers by allowing residents to receive their health information through the app.”

Residents will also have the option to allow family members to access the service.

An app is being developed with an anticipated launch this spring.

WATCH I Here’s what the new online health record will mean for patients:

New online health record means you can get health test results — and track your meds

Starting Feb. 1, people who have a MyGovNL account can get healthcare information online. Making test results and prescribed medication information available will help alleviate burdens on doctors and give patients more of a one-stop shop, according to Health Minister Tom Osborne.

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Health Information

December 24, 2023admin

2023 sets a new record for health data breaches

Odds are, you’ve gotten at least one of the unnerving letters in your mailbox this year: “We’re writing to inform you of a cybersecurity incident,” it might start. It’s the standard notice many health care organizations are required to provide when your protected health information gets exposed — and in 2023, data leaks, hacks, and mishandling led more of them to be delivered than ever before.

As many as 116 million individuals have been impacted by large health data breaches reported to the Department of Health and Human Services this year, according to records from its Office for Civil Rights as of December 21. That number has more than doubled over recent counts, driven primarily by a surge in hacking and ransomware attacks on health care organizations regulated by the privacy rule HIPAA.

Since 2009, OCR has issued reports on large data breaches — those that impact 500 or more patients — which appear on its public “wall of shame.” The last record for individual impact was set in 2015, when three data breaches at health plans Anthem, Premera Blue Cross, and Excellus impacted tens of millions of patients each. It was a massive outlier, driving the total individuals impacted by large health breaches over 112 million.

By contrast, this year’s breaches were both large and numerous. Twenty hacking and IT incidents each impacted more than 1 million people, with the largest, at HCA Healthcare, exposing information for up to 11 million. Along with other industries and public groups, health care organizations fell prey to widespread hacks enabled by the MOVEit file transfer vulnerability, from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to software providers like Nuance and Welltok. HHS has emphasized the challenge of these attacks in a new cybersecurity strategy issued this month: Between 2018

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Health Information

December 6, 2023admin

Nurse ruled to have breached privacy over Covid-19 record check

A lack of training led to a Covid-19 privacy breach at an NWT health centre in January 2021, the territory’s information and privacy commissioner says.

The commissioner’s decision concerns a nurse at the Tłı̨chǫ Community Services Agency, or TCSA, who looked at a patient’s medical records and disclosed their Covid-19 status to someone else – without the patient’s consent or the legal authority to do so.

According to the decision, which was published late last month, a man identified as Patient A visited a health centre in a Tłı̨chǫ community seeking a return-to-work note. He told the nurse he had recently visited another person, identified as Patient B, who had been tested for Covid-19. He said he was concerned for his own health alongside that of Patient B and his co-workers.

In response, the nurse checked Patient B’s medical records and told Patient A that Patient B had tested negative for Covid-19.

Patient A later contacted a member of Patient B’s family and relayed the test result. That prompted the family member to contact TCSA with concerns about a possible breach of Patient B’s privacy.

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Andrew Fox, the territory’s information and privacy commissioner, found the nurse breached Patient B’s privacy twice: first when accessing their medical records, then again when disclosing their test result to Patient A.

Fox said while the nurse acted in good faith, there was no need to breach Patient B’s privacy to address Patient A’s health concerns. He said her actions did not help public health surveillance efforts and were not consistent with contact tracing protocols.

“Good intention does not override the privacy protections in the legislation,” he wrote.

Fox said while the potential for direct harm to Patient B was relatively low, the effect on their faith in the agency’s ability and commitment

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Health Advice

January 24, 2023admin

WHO launches funding appeal to help a record number of people in complex, intersecting health emergencies

WHO is launching its 2023 health emergency appeal today for US$ 2.54 billion to provide assistance to millions of people around the world facing health emergencies. The number of people in need of humanitarian relief has increased by almost a quarter compared to 2022, to a record 339 million.

Currently, WHO is responding to an unprecedented number of intersecting health emergencies: climate change-related disasters such as flooding in Pakistan and food insecurity across the Sahel and in the greater Horn of Africa; the war in Ukraine; and the health impact of conflict in Yemen, Afghanistan, Syria and northern Ethiopia – all of these emergencies overlapping with the health system disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and outbreaks of measles, cholera, and other killers.

“This unprecedented convergence of crises demands an unprecedented response,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “More people than ever before face the imminent risk of disease and starvation and need help now. The world cannot look away and hope these crises resolve themselves. I urge donors to be generous and help WHO to save lives, prevent the spread of disease within and across borders, and support communities as they rebuild.”

WHO is currently responding to 54 health crises around the world, 11 of which are classified as Grade 3, WHO’s highest level of emergency, requiring a response at all three levels of the organization. As it is often the case, the most vulnerable are the worst hit.

In 2022, WHO provided medicines, other supplies, training for doctors and other health workers, vaccines, enhanced disease surveillance, mobile clinics, mental health support, maternal health consultations and much more. WHO delivers cost-effective, high-impact responses that protect health, lives and livelihoods. Every US$ 1 invested in WHO generates at least US$ 35 in return on investment*.

WHO responds to health

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Tag: record

New online health record means you can get health test results — and track your meds

A lack of training led to a Covid-19 privacy breach at an NWT health centre in January 2021, the territory’s information and privacy commissioner says.