Should Government Have E-Record of Every
Woman Who’s Had an Abortion?
Should doctors and hospitals be required by the federal government to
maintain a national network of electronic health records for every
individual in America that indicates, for example, whether that
individual has had an abortion, a sexually transmitted disease, a
mental illness or a drug problem?
Such a system has already been mandated by the stimulus law enacted in
February, and politicians in Washington, D.C., would now prefer not to
answer straightforward questions about it.
Americans should not let them get away with it.
The stimulus law provided for “the development of a nationwide health
information technology infrastructure” that would include an electronic
health record for “each person in the United States by 2014.”
The law says these records should contain each person’s “medical
history and problems lists.”
This system holding each American’s “medical history and problems
lists,” the law says, will allow for “the electronic linkage of health
care providers, health plans, the government and other interested
parties to enable electronic exchange and use of health information
among all the components in the health care infrastructure in
accordance with applicable law.”
When President Obama was pushing his health care plan earlier this
year, he pointed to this system as a way the government would save
money on health care—and indicated that a person’s full medical history
would be included in the system.
“You shouldn’t have to tell every new doctor you see about your medical
history, or what prescriptions you’re taking. You should not have to
repeat costly tests,” Obama told the American Medical Association on
June 15. “All that information should be stored securely in a private
medical record so that your information can be tracked from one doctor
to another—even if you change jobs, even if you move, even if you have
to see a number of different specialists. That’s just common sense. And
that will not only mean less paper-pushing and lower administrative
costs, saving taxpayers billions of dollars; it will also mean all of
you physicians will have an easier time doing your jobs.”
At a town hall meeting in Annandale, Va., on July 1, Obama argued that
the electronic-health-records system would also reduce medical errors.
“We have to build on the investments that we’ve made in electronic
medical records,” said Obama. “We already made those investments in the
Recovery Act—because when everything is digitalized, all your
records—your privacy is protected, but all your records (are) on a
digital form—that reduces medical errors.”
Speaking at AARP headquarters on July 28, Obama said the
electronic-health-records network would substitute for people having to
“relay their entire medical history” to each new health care provider.
“We’re also working to computerize medical records, because right now
too many folks wind up taking the same test over and over and over
again because their providers can’t access previous results or they
have to relay their entire medical history, every medication they’ve
taken, every surgery they’ve gotten, every time they see a new
provider,” said Obama. “Electronic medical records will help to put an
end to all that.”
On the face of it, the system created by Obama and Congress in February
is designed to record when any person in America has diabetes,
contracts strep throat, breaks an ankle—has an abortion, contracts HIV
or suffers a nervous breakdown.
But when CNSNews.com video reporter Nicholas Ballasy specifically asked
Rep. Patrick Kennedy, D-R.I., last week whether people would be able to
opt out of having abortions and STDs reported on their electronic
health records, Kennedy said people would be able to do that.
“This is totally going to be up to the individual,” Kennedy told
Ballasy. “So, obviously, for the full effectiveness of the person, it’s
to their benefit to have everything on a record, but it’s going to be
totally up to the individual.”
On Monday, CNSNews.com White House Correspondent Fred Lucas asked White
House Spokesman Robert Gibbs whether he agreed with Kennedy that people
would be able to prevent abortions and certain diseases from being
listed on their electronic health records.
Even though Gibbs’ boss has been promoting the system as one that will
substitute for a person having to tell a new doctor about “every
medication” they have ever taken or “every surgery” they have ever
undergone, Gibbs said he had “no idea” whether someone would be able to
keep abortions and some diseases out of the record.
“I’m not a health IT expert. I would direct you to somebody—I have no
idea,” said Gibbs.
If Obama’s health care plan is enacted, not only will the government
subsidize the health care of Americans making up to 400 percent of the
poverty level, it will also know what health care Americans have gotten
and are getting.
Liberals who used a bogus “right to privacy” to violate the right to
life of unborn children now seek to annihilate the real right to
privacy of everyone in their quest to socialize medicine.
Contact: Terence P. Jeffrey
Source: CNSNews.com
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Date: September 30, 2009
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The IFRL is the largest grassroots pro-life organization in
Illinois. A non-profit organization, that serves as the state
coordinating body for local pro-life chapters representing thousands of
Illinois citizens working to restore respect for all human life in our
society. The IFRL is composed of people of different political
persuasions, various faiths and diverse economic, social and ethnic
backgrounds. Since 1973 the Illinois Federation for Right to Life has
been working to end abortion and restore legal protection to those members of the
human family who are threatened by abortion, infanticide and euthanasia. Diverse though we are, we hold one common belief - that
every human being has an inalienable right to life that is precious and must be protected. IFRL is
dedicated to restoring the right to life to the unborn, and protection
for the disabled and the elderly. Click here to learn more about the IFRL.