Friends and Colleagues:
New NIMH strategic plan aims to focus, accelerate mental health research
More bad news: Currently NIH and all research is predicated on two approaches:
1) The research and public health loopholes in HIPAA allow
research w/o patient knowledge or consent to be done by ANY entity
that claims to do research, such as IBM and Lexis Nexis. These
loopholes are a key way that corporations have gained access to the
nation’s PHI. Also, academic research is increasingly funded by
industry, whose interests conflict with the public’s interests and
rights. It’s very disturbing to see the NIH pursue the interests of
researchers (of all stripes) ahead of the rights and interests of
individuals
2) There is massive industry and govt pressure to end 42 CFR Part
2 and roll all MH and behavioral data into EHRs
I hope all of us can work with our other professional organizations to
FIGHT to preserve one of only 2 federal laws/regulations that give
every American privacy rights/control over health information.
Sorry to be posting bad news again,
Deb
Deborah C. Peel, MD
Founder and Chair
Patient Privacy Rights