Washington, D.C.
The Bush administration this week announced it was tossing out former president Bill Clinton’s plan for keeping medical records private, and imposing rules of its own. Bush set strict limits on the use of personal information for marketing purposes, but rolled back Clinton’s proposal to make doctors get written consent before releasing data for treatment or paying claims. Tommy Thompson, secretary of health and human services, said that requirement would have forced sick people “to run all around town signing consent forms before they could get care.” Privacy advocates said Bush’s rules, which take effect in April, will deprive patients of control over health records that insurance companies or government agencies could use against them.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
October 19 editorial cartoonsCartoons Sunday's editorial cartoons include Pete Hegseth and the press, an absence of government, and George Washington crossing the Delaware
-
A little-visited Indian Ocean archipelagoThe Week Recommends The paradise of the Union of the Comoros features beautiful beaches, colourful coral reefs and lush forests
-
AI: is the bubble about to burst?In the Spotlight Stock market ever-more reliant on tech stocks whose value relies on assumptions of continued growth and easy financing
