The following report is by ZeroHedge:
A startling revelation has emerged from a recent congressional investigation: several leading pharmacy chains in the United States, including CVS Health, Kroger, and Walgreens Boots Alliance, have been found to provide patients’ medical records to law enforcement agencies without warrants.
Initiated in June, the congressional review targeted eight prominent pharmacy chains to scrutinize their privacy practices in response to rising public concerns about health privacy and surveillance. This investigation, led by Senator Ron Wyden, Representative Pramila Jayapal, and Representative Sara Jacobs, was propelled into motion following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022, which heightened fears about the confidentiality of medical records.
Key findings from the probe:
- Lack of Legal Review: CVS Health, Kroger, and Rite Aid, among others, do not require legal review before complying with law enforcement requests for patient records. This practice puts immense pressure on pharmacy staff, who are not legal experts, to immediately respond to such demands.
- Inconsistent Privacy Protections: The investigation discovered a concerning disparity in how these pharmacies handle government demands for patient data. Many Americans are left vulnerable due to inconsistent privacy protections across different pharmacy chains.
- Warrantless Sharing: Alarmingly, none of the eight surveyed pharmacies require a warrant before sharing pharmacy records with law enforcement, except where state law mandates otherwise.
- Transparency and Notification: Only a few companies, like CVS Health, Walgreens Boots Alliance, and Kroger, have committed to issuing annual transparency reports regarding law enforcement demands. Amazon Pharmacy stands out as the only entity that proactively notifies patients of law enforcement requests for their records, barring legal prohibitions.
Under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), patients in the U.S. have the right to know who accesses their health information. That said, one has to request this disclosure data, as healthcare providers are not obliged to provide it. This gap in the HIPAA provisions leaves room for unchecked access to sensitive medical information by law enforcement without patients’ knowledge.
Officials with CVS, Kroger and Rite Aid said they instruct their pharmacy staff members to process law enforcement requests on the spot, saying the staff members face “extreme pressure to immediately respond,” the lawmakers’ letter said.
The eight pharmacy giants told congressional investigators that they collectively received tens of thousands of legal demands every year, and that most were in connection with civil lawsuits. It’s unclear how many were related to law enforcement demands, or how many requests were fulfilled.
Only one of the companies, Amazon, said it notified customers when law enforcement demanded its pharmacy records unless there was a legal prohibition, such as a “gag order,” preventing it from doing so, the lawmakers said. -WaPo
The lawmakers have called on the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to address these shortcomings and revamp HIPAA standards. Senator Wyden, voicing concerns on social media, warned of a potential ‘witch hunt’ in Republican-led states, where law enforcement could misuse this access to prosecute women for abortion-related procedures or even birth control.
CVS retorted that its practices are in alignment with industry standards and HIPAA regulations, while Amazon reiterated its commitment to customer privacy.
According to the lawmakers, “Americans deserve to have their private medical information protected at the pharmacy counter.”
AUTHOR COMMENTARY
American’s deserve to have ALL of our private information protected and secure; but, we all know that our Amendment rights mean zilch these days, and have not for a while now.
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Amendment IV
Everything thing you do these days will leave behind a paper trail, especially in the digital age, and therefore nothing is ever really secure; and these continued blatant obstructions of justice have become some common the masses are used to it, and do not care at all that they are slaves to the state, given the illusion that they are free.
[7] Who goeth a warfare any time at his own charges? who planteth a vineyard, and eateth not of the fruit thereof? or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock? [8] Say I these things as a man? or saith not the law the same also? [9] For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen? [10] Or saith he it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope. (1 Corinthians 9:7-10).
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This is evil! Pure evil!
The Jesuit run DEATH-care system. I’ve always hated hospitals and doctors’ offices, now I know why!
Not surprised. Nothing is truly private anymore & one must strive & stay close to the Lord to keep even their soul closed to their traps of bondage, defiling prying and influencing….surveiling for that old accuser of the brethren, devouring one another. Wicked, subtle, proud & covetous men & women laid their nets and snares with that old prince of the power of the air, but they fall into them and are captured themselves in the end: the deceiving and being deceived building the system of antichrist. Playing God and serving the devil and spirit of antichrist, because truth has fallen in our streets & lawlessness reigns. Spoiled by philosophy and vain traditions, antichrist sorceries and idolatries, science falsely so-called. The only door out & refuge is Christ, comfort and strength coming of continuing in his word & way even so.
Why would the police want health records?
Americans are deceived by TERMS in the documents we sign. I have seen an unabridged version of the HIPPA law. I worked I healthcare for 30 years. We kept patients information private before HIPPA.
When you receive a copy of what we are told is the HIPPA law when we seek any medical care and are told to sign another document proving we received it, we are not being fully informed because it’s not the full law. In the full law, the last paragraph states, that by signing the attached paper, we give the federal govt permission to access our medical records. Funny thing is, we cannot be denied care by not signing. I use it as an opportunity to educate staff who are just following orders