Seeking Treatment After These Executive Orders By Bho

[Ubipa]

I used to be that we had some doctor/patient confidentiality. A provider had a duty to notify authorities if, and only if, you were making a direct threat against someone. That threat had to be specific.

Now, Obama has amended HIPPA and is telling doctors that they can notify the FBI if they FEEL, someone MAY BE a threat. No charges, no trial, no conviction, no due process, no recourse, just a stripping of your right, without your knowledge.

I doubt what he is doing is legal. HIPPA is law and he can't amend that on his own. That doesn't change the fact that he is doing it, and before the courts stop him, much damage could be done.

I'm not seeking any treatment, for anything, and certainly not for my PTSD, until this is resolved. Reveal some inner anger to a health care professional and have my rights stripped? Even though I have committed no crime? I'm not risking it. I'm not having my right to defend myself stripped. This all feels very intrusive and very violating. I feel like I can't trust my doctors if they are being called on to be Obama's spies.

Does anyone else feel this way?

 

[Caca]

Now, Obama has amended HIPPA and is telling doctors that they can notify the FBI if they FEEL, someone MAY BE a threat. No charges, no trial, no conviction, no due process, no recourse, just a stripping of your right, without your knowledge.

Source? Would love to know where you got this info, and whether it's accurate.

 

[Ubipa]

Today the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) moved forward on the Administration’s commitment to modify the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule to expressly permit certain covered entities to disclose to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) the identities of those individuals who, for specific mental health reasons, already are prohibited by Federal law from having a firearm.

The modification announced today better enables the reporting of the identities of these individuals to the background check system, while continuing to strongly protect individuals’ privacy interests.

Specifically, this final rule gives States improved flexibility to ensure accurate but limited information is reported to the NICS. The rulemaking makes clear that, under the Privacy Rule, certain covered entities are permitted to disclose limited information to the NICS. The information that can be disclosed is the minimum necessary identifying information about individuals who have been involuntarily committed to a mental institution or otherwise have been determined by a lawful authority to be a danger to themselves or others or to lack the mental capacity to manage their own affairs.

The new modification is carefully and narrowly tailored to preserve the patient-provider relationship and ensure that individuals are not discouraged from seeking voluntary treatment. This rule applies only to a small subset of HIPAA covered entities that either make the mental health determinations that disqualify individuals from having a firearm or are designated by their States to report this information to NICS – and it allows such entities to report only limited identifying, non-clinical information to the NICS.

The rule does not apply to most treating providers and does not allow reporting of diagnostic, clinical, or other mental health treatment information.

It is important to note that the vast majority of Americans with mental health conditions are not violent and that those with mental illness are in fact more likely to be victims than perpetrators. An individual who seeks help for mental health conditions and/or receives mental health services is not automatically legally prohibited from having a firearm; nothing in this final rule changes that. HHS continues to support efforts by the Administration to dispel negative attitudes and misconceptions relating to mental illness and to encourage individuals to seek voluntary mental health services. Learn more about mental health resources and recovery at (I can't post links)

 

[Ubipa]

That is from the HHS site. So it's from him, and presented in the most favorable light to him. Plus he can't be trusted or I would have lost my doctor to begin with. Still, it's the stripping of rights with no hearing, no trial, no crime committed.

 

[Ulaw]

Ummm, I think you've grossly misinterpreted this to suit your own anti Obama agenda. I am wondering if you're a troll ... nowhere does it say or even imply doctors can arbitrarily report you to the FBI for venting. In fact it says this does not apply to most treatment providers, and the only info involved seems to be whether or not you've been placed on a psych hold in the past. You either cannot read or are trolling us all to try to stir up trouble.

 

[Pocu]

This rule applies only to a small subset of HIPAA covered entities that either make the mental health determinations that disqualify individuals from having a firearm or are designated by their States to report this information to NICS – and it allows such entities to report only limited identifying, non-clinical information to the NICS.

The rule does not apply to most treating providers and does not allow reporting of diagnostic, clinical, or other mental health treatment information.

I read it as getting rid of a potential conflict point in HIPPA for very specific providers who are also the individuals designated to participate in the disqualification process - it really is quite narrow.