Re: Lady Di's medical records

[Carl Ellison <cme@tis.com>]

>Date: Mon, 1 Aug 1994 00:22:06 -0700
>From: shamrock@netcom.com (Lucky Green)
>Subject: Re: Lady Di's medical records

>I personally know individuals that are avoiding medical care because of
>concerns about confidentiality. It seems the loopholes are extending.
>Patient records stay around for years. Who knows what the requirements will
>be five years from now? It would not surprise me if individuals who have
>been seeking drug treatment within the last, say, five years would have to
>be reported to the Klinton Kommunal Kare agency.

Then there are security clearances ---

"Answers to questions in items 18 through 22 are NOT limited to the last
5, 10 or 15 years, but pertain to your entire life. (See DEATILED
INSTRUCTIONS.)

[...]

"20. DRUG/ALCOHOL USE AND MENTAL HEALTH ("YES" answers must be explained in
accordance with DETAILED INSTRUCTIONS.)

"a.	Have you ever tried or used or possessed any narcotic (to include
herion or cocaine), depressant (in include quaaludes), stimulant,
hallucinogen (to include LSD or PCP), or cannabis (to include marijuana or
hashish), or any mind-altering substance (to include glue or paint), even
one-time or on an experimental basis, except as prescribed by a licensed
physician?

...

"e.	Have you ever been treated for a mental, emotional, psychological
or personality disorder/condition/problem?

"f.	Have you ever consulted or been counseled by any mental health
professional?"

---------- in the DETAILED INSTRUCTIONS ----------------

"e and f. Mental Health.  If 'Yes" is answered to either e or f, provide, in
item 14 [an empty box], the following information:

	o Exact problem (including name of disorder, if known)

	o Name and address of primary physician, therapist, counselor,
	  or other mental health professional who treated you of from whom
	  you received counseling.

	o Date(s) of treatment/counseling.

	o If treatment/counseling is still continuing, so indicate
	  and provide frequency of visits.

	o Name and address of any hospital, clinic, and/or agency where
	  treated/counseled as an in-patient.

	o Date(s) of hospitalization and/or in-patient treatment/counseling."

==============================================================================

Clearly, to aid all those joining the military and otherwise getting a
security clearance, it would help to have all citizens' central gov't
health-care database contain all these details, so that when you fill out
your security clearance forms, you can just hand over your health-care
smart-card giving them access to the whole database.

Right?

Who are we to make life hard for those dedicated, young Americans who have
to go through all this work?

 - Carl