state regs for practice of medicine

[Guest guest]

Please read this article about what is happening with medicine and patient

choice. I hope soon that we can start to become more involved with politics

both for our own future profession and also choices for patients.

 

 

Mike W. Bowser, L Ac

 

 

MN Senate Bill Advances " Cookbook Medicine "

and Intrudes on Patient Privacy

 

 

(St. Paul, Minnesota) - Patients and doctors lost in the Minnesota Senate

today, according to Citizens' Council on Health Care (CCHC).

 

" In a misdirected attempt to cut health care costs, Minnesota senators are

advancing 'cookbook medicine' and rationed care. This is bad for patients,

bad for doctors and bad for the practice of medicine, " says Twila Brase,

president of CCHC.

 

The Health and Human Services omnibus bill which passed 38-29 today in the

Minnesota Senate includes provisions to require the state health department

to determine treatment protocols for patient care - an amendment offered by

Senator Sheila Kiscaden (I-Rochester). The bill will also make physician

compliance with those protocols public, and establish a bonus payment system

for doctors who practice in accordance with these government-determined

protocols.

 

Conflict of Interest

" The Senate is imposing a financial conflict of interest on the

patient-doctor relationship to make sure doctors practice medicine the way

government decides they should practice medicine. This is government managed

care, " says Brase.

 

She adds, " The Senate is moving health care away from individualized

treatment and toward government-directed health care. If this bill passes,

state law will require that people far from the bedside determine what

health care services are and are not available to all patients. "

 

Privacy Intrusion

The bill also authorizes the Minnesota Department of Health to create a

large health information sharing network. Individually-identifiable health

data in immunization registries, genetic testing registries, and other

disease registries could be electronically exchanged, shared, and disclosed

without patient consent. Senator Julianne Ortman's (R-Chanhassen) attempt to

delete the provision failed 25-38.

 

" Most citizens in these registries do not know that they are part of a

government database, and even if they found out, state law does not give

them a right to refuse, " Brase says. " Now, the health department wants to

freely exchange private health data between registries and between state and

local health agencies.  This will allow them to build profiles and conduct

research on individual citizens, all without the citizen's knowledge or

consent. "

 

" The confidential patient-doctor relationship is under attack, and right now

patients and doctors are losing, " says Brase.

 

 

# # #

 

Citizens' Council on Health Care is a non-profit, independent organization

that supports free-market ideas in health care.

 

 

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Citizens' Council on Health Care

1954 University Ave. W, Ste. 8

St. Paul, MN 55104

651-646-8935 ph

651-646-0100 fx

http://www.cchconline.org