It is essential to consider the influence of regulations that affect the control and confidentiality of medical information while examining medical confidentiality concerns. The most considerable attention was paid to the Patriot Act of 2001 and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 2003. Technically, the government has a plethora of alternatives under these rules for obtaining medical records for national security concerns (Jawaid, 2020). Furthermore, if a person’s medical records are discovered as part of a national security probe, he or she will almost certainly not be sought for approval and may never be informed of the data breach.
The Patriot Act, enacted after the terrorist acts of September 11, 2001, granted the government broad powers to monitor US residents. Within its legislation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) can acquire a secret court order to take medical data, school, or employment records, and even library records, according to Section 215 of the statute (Walton, 2020). The legislation forbids doctors from informing anybody, including patients, about the seizure of their confidential medical information. Doctors who break the quiet order can face fines and charges of obstruction of justice (Walton, 2020). Although complaints were filed by professionals, associations, and ordinary medical professionals on the simple grounds that medical records were unlikely to provide any substantive information about the terrorist threat, let alone data privacy, the Patriot Act was still seen as the first line of defense for citizens of the USA.
Another essential legislative act was introduced two years later. The national security exception in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) privacy rule, which took effect in 2003, allows doctors, hospitals, and organizations linked to national security to providing private medical information to federal officials for security activities (Frey, 2018). It permits the release of medical data under the pretext of protection of the authorities, as well as a broad list of people who are qualified for Secret Service protection, such as visiting foreign heads of state and notable foreign visitors (Frey, 2018). It’s worth noting that the Patriot Act’s section 215 powers are larger and more covert than HIPAA’s. Unlike HIPAA, however, section 215 provisions are either required or optional, allowing the agency free to adopt whichever legislative option.
The basic characteristics of national security and privacy are closely interwoven. Mass surveillance has become a feasible technological and budgetary option for governments, but it has also raised concerns about the right to privacy (Jawaid, 2020). Governments and commercial companies may gather and retain a large quantity of data on each individual thanks to technologies, putting that person’s privacy in danger. Even though privacy is seen as a fundamental human right that must be protected, control over it is slipping (Jawaid¸2020). Because both sides have compelling grounds, the debate over privacy against national security became extremely multifaceted and, at the same time, controversial. There may be concessions between national security and privacy, but they must be supported by facts, figures, and strictly confirmed necessity. Governments should not remain indifferent to the powers granted to their security agencies in the name of national security. Effective guidelines backed by legislation must be created to avoid the misuse of these powers (Jawaid, 2020). Proper government supervision is necessary to address concerns about privacy and abuse.
Cybersecurity challenges are the most serious threats that healthcare businesses experience and will encounter in terms of protecting patient privacy. Furthermore, due to the unique wide array of competencies seen in healthcare institutions, the industry is a potential target for targeted attacks. Equipment and data are extremely significant in the healthcare industry. Data loss and hardware failures resulting in leaks, in my opinion, pose the greatest threat. Due to the sheer volume of personal information and data, healthcare companies’ equipment is among the most complicated, sophisticated, and valuable in the world, making it an appealing target for threat actors. Ransomware assaults are also a significant source of concern, owing to the rapid advancement of such technology and the possibility of data privacy breaches.
The dangers to healthcare companies mentioned above emphasize the need to ensure that the security system is sophisticated enough to handle any situation. Every medical institution should follow the fundamental principles of cybersecurity, which include educating staff, alerting the business about the sorts of risks, and employing essential security services (Hoffman, 2020). If the budget allows, private cybersecurity may also be worth considering. Private cybersecurity businesses are a relatively new development in the world of cybersecurity that protects data and converts it into valuable information to protect a company from cyberattacks (Hoffman, 2020).
Under legislation developments of the Patriot Act and HIPAA, the government has a multitude of options for collecting private medical records without consent. Undoubtedly, the link between national security and privacy and its interpretation is comprehensive and interpretative, but the intervention in privacy must be based on strict guidelines. Governments should not be oblivious to the powers that their security services have been given in the name of national security. Moreover, every medical facility nowadays should adhere to the basic principles of cybersecurity in order to prevent the confidentiality of the medical data of the patients.
References
Frey, B. B. (2018). Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. In The SAGE Encyclopedia of Educational Research, Measurement, and Evaluation.
Hoffman, S. (2020). Cybersecurity threats in healthcare organizations. World Libraries, 24(1).
Jawaid, T. (2020). Privacy vs National Security. International Journal of Computer Trends and Technology, 68 (7), 1-7.
Walton, T. R. (2020). USA Patriot Act. In Encyclopedia of Public Administration and Public Policy (pp. 3320-3321). Routledge.