Robert Gellman is a Washington, DC-based privacy and information policy consultant and former chief counsel to the House of Representatives subcommittee on information, justice, transportation, and agriculture. The rhetoric from the President is similar to statements that other politicians and policy makers routinely make about the vital importance of confidentiality in the relationship between physician and patient. There is just one problem. Medical records are not confidential, and they haven't been confidential for decades. Banks tell customers that depositor records are confidential.
Medical records have the same pattern of widespread use.
If you are hospitalized, hundreds of hospital employees may see some or all of your records. Records may be shared with labs, x-ray facilities, nursing homes, physical therapists, pharmacists, and others involved in treatment. At each institution, computer operators, lawyers, and accountants can access records. If you have third party insurance, bills will be sent to claims processors and clearinghouses before the bills reach your insurer. If your employer pays for your health insurance, then the employer may be able to obtain your treatment records.