According to this government, there is
nothing that can't be sold for a profit. Up until now your medical
records were private, personal between you and your doctor, well now
that is all about to change. Your medical records are now just
another product from which profit can be made. It could influence
whether you can get insurance or not, your job application, whether
you can get a mortgage or not. All and sundry will be able to buy
your personal medical details for their own personal gain. Another
step down the road to total surveillance, your are watched, spied on
and now your personal medical records are up for scrutiny.
This from SumOfUs:
Starting this year, private companies will be able to
buy information on us from the NHS’s new universal patient database
-- including everything from mental health conditions, sexually
transmitted infections and diseases like cancer -- all linked to your
postcode, gender and ethnicity.
We’ve all been opted into the scheme by the
government without our knowledge. And the clock is ticking --
the government has said they will upload our data in a matter
of just a few weeks. If we’re going to stop this, we have
to act now.
It doesn’t really get more personal than what you discuss with your
doctor. They know the most personal things about us -- like whether
we’ve ever been depressed, had an embarrassing infection or
struggled with drug & alcohol problems.
The government claims that individuals won’t be able to be
identified. However, many experts have warned that under the
current plans, we could easily be singled out through simple
cross-referencing of other databases -- especially if you have a rare
or unusual condition. Imagine your employer finding
that you might have had an abortion when you were a teenager. Or your
insurance company finding out you are HIV positive. The
consequences for us as individuals could be huge.
We know that when we act together, we can bring about real change.
When we fought to get High Street names like River Island and
Edinburgh Woollen Mill to sign up to protect Bangladeshi factory
workers, we won! Now we need to step up to defend something
precious -- our right to privacy.
NHS
patient data to be made available to drug and insurance firms,
The Guardian, 19 January 2014.
Price list for access to medical data, Health & Social Care Information Centre, January 2014
Price list for access to medical data, Health & Social Care Information Centre, January 2014
