INVASION OF PRIVACY IN THE NAME OF HEALTH COMPLIANCE

I guess it is the result of growing up in the Wild West during the cold war era but I tend to cringe whenever the slightest waft of big brother emanates in my direction. Never a fan of the patriot act, I am a strict constructionist and would prefer people keep their shoes on in airports and just buck it up and show some cojones of their own, so to speak. In short, leave me alone and I will get along just fine.
Now, you are all aware of the well intentioned, overly bureaucratic, actually intrusive and extortionist policy implementation that has arisen from the HIPAA. That is the HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT passed in 1996 that makes insurers insure people. That is working out real well isn’t it? Well, included in there is the requirement that we waste zillions of dollars in paperwork by acknowledging that every health care person you see is sworn to secrecy about what they find out about you. Another nice thing, right? Every time we visit a doctor we have to verify that we have been told of this and they have to find a way to have us sign in without the next guy seeing our name on the list. That is a study in itself.
Meanwhile, as I am thinking I am protected from anyone learning ANYTHING about my health unless I specifically authorize it, suddenly these “Care Considerations” start landing in my mailbox from a company called ACTIVEHEALTH Management. Seems they have dug up the fact that I did not get a flu shot. Where do they get this information? From the HIPAA top secret medical data? And not only are they trying to coerce me into compliance with THEIR idea of what I should be doing with my health, they promise to rat on me to my own doctor. Yes, I have major problems with this.
I did a little research and discovered that the company is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Aetna, my current medical insurance company, as it is the only real option from my husband’s employer. Well, that is a nice little ruse. Just buy the company and you can invade my privacy all you want in the name of the corporation who is supposed to be helping pay the bills but insists on meddling in the affairs that in my view are strictly a matter for me and my doctor.
Of course the website is filled with all sorts of self serving studies that support with stats that by doing this data mining and comparing a patient’s record with the one-size-fits-all guidelines that big doctor brother has, in his infinite and remote wisdom, established, they can successfully bring us all –doctor and patient alike—into “compliance.” I am offended and angry on so many levels about this I can barely type this with my thumbs.
First, who the hell gave this New York Company permission to mine my Arizona medical data? I did not. But it may be academic because I am certain that had I refused to allow it they would kindly ask me to take my sinuses and vagina elsewhere-but there is nowhere else to go. I do not recall signing any HIPAA form for this anyway. The whole HIPAA thing is a farce.
Second, why are they injecting themselves into my relationship with my doctor? Yes, doctors make mistakes ( I can tell you about several instances in just this past week)and patients have trouble keeping up; but, those are flaws in the system that are not resolved with the Eye in the Sky watching over and reaching out to pinch us when we don’t follow their mandate. This is social engineering at its worst.
I don’t want a flu shot. They don’t work. I don’t want a mammogram-I have no family history (both my grandmothers lived well into their 80’s fully boobed) and no reason to date to subject myself to the unhealthy levels of energy that they blast at you. And anyway, they really don’t work either. I can say that about any number of needless tests that our country spends billions of dollars on per year. We are great at pointless tests but when you have an actual problem, like this pain I have had for many, many months now, they have no clue what it is or how to fix it. I know a girl who has been in the hospital for three days now while they debate whether she has appendicitis or not.
Third, how much money is this little exercise costing? First they had to buy the company from the well-intentioned but overzealous medical doctor/computer nut who invented it. And I am sure it was not a fire sale. Then they have to do the data mining and employ all the folks for that. Finally, they do a direct mailing, not just to me but my doctor as well. It is two pages long and creepy. And we got two of them the other day, one for me and one for the spouse-privacy thing you know. Ask any business and the overhead associated with direct, personalized mail, is astronomical. And how inefficient are these people in spite of all that? The letters are dated December 24, 2007 but we got them on January 25, 2008-an entire month later and on the far side of the flu season so coming into compliance with their flu shot mandate would make no difference. Another friend was recently told by an ER doc that by the time they get the flu sera out there the bug has morphed into some other strain already anyway.
No, I am not a doctor. But given the experiences I have had with doctors that is not a big deal. My computer is not a doctor either, nor is ActiveHealth’s. And furthermore, it is not me. Maybe most people are total idiots incapable of thinking and doing anything for their own health. There are certainly mountains of studies to prove that. But don’t assume I am in with that bunch. I know myself and I can make my own decisions, thank you very much. And I am tired of letting other people make money off the fact that they think they know better for me. This information is unsolicited, unneeded and insulting to boot.
With this simple example I can point out billions of dollars of waste in the system. It is not hard to figure out why we have the most expensive system in the world. But try and pry some of that money from those who are sucking it off the top and you are a heretic.
I know, let’s have the government take it over-that way we can get a check up while getting scanned in while moving barefoot through the security bay of the airport terminal. Think of the savings from that efficiency!