Does HIPAA Have Any Power?
Regulators have logged dozens, even hundreds, of complaints against some health providers for violating federal patient privacy law. Warnings are doled out privately, but sanctions are imposed only rarely.
Patient Privacy
Trouble at the Department of Veterans Affairs
Deceased vets’ data has been sent to the wrong widows. Employees have snooped on the records of patients who’ve committed suicide. And whistleblowers say their own medical privacy has been violated.
Your Medical Records Are in Danger
Lessons from a year reporting on loopholes and lax enforcement of the federal patient-privacy law known as HIPAA.
How Can We Treat the Seriously Mentally Ill Before Tragedy Occurs, Instead of After?
Laura's Law could provide a middle ground between the old norm of total institutionalization and the new one of total abandonment. But the statute is struggling to reconcile forestalling tragedies with patients' rights.
Treating the Mentally Ill Before It's Too Late
An early look at a Pacific Standard story that's currently only available to subscribers.
Small-Scale Violations of Medical Privacy
Breaches that expose the health details of just a patient or two are proliferating nationwide. Regulators focus on larger privacy violations and rarely take action on small ones, despite the harm.
Privacy Not Included: Federal Law Lags Way Behind New Health-Care Technology
The federal privacy law known as HIPAA doesn’t cover home paternity tests, fitness trackers, or health apps. When a Florida woman complained after seeing the paternity test results of thousands of people online, federal regulators told her they didn’t have jurisdiction.
We Know What's in Your Medicine Cabinet
Even our most personal health conditions are part of a vast but hidden market for our medical data. Don't we deserve to know about it?
Who's Reading Your Medical Data?
An early look at a Pacific Standard story that's currently only available to subscribers.
Patient Privacy Isn't Dead
Yet another health insurer recently reported a massive data breach, affecting the financial and medical information of 11 million people. We asked the head of the federal agency tasked with investigating these issues whether the notion of patient privacy was outmoded.