Third Party Invasions Into Private Conversations

There was a day in which counselors/consumers were protected by priviledged confidentiality. Now that is all starting to change.

At first, I thought the change was very good idea for society in some cases. For instance, having the duty to warn if someone states that they are out to kill someone or reporting child abuse/neglect.

Now comes the extreme invasion of privacy disguised as a consumer protection law. This new law is called The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). I believed HIPAA was designed to allow for electronic billing to be more accessible with your informed consent. Most people believed that it adds more protection to their privacy. What is not commonly known is that HIPAA has opened the floodgates for the invasion of your privacy. Insurance companies can get your mental health diagnosis. Then your information is available to make decisions about loans for your house or ability to get affordable life insurance. Those were just a couple of examples about the devastating effects this invasion to your privacy could be.

I will include some links that you can explore for a more detailed picture of your privacy rights being invaded.

The National Coalition of Mental Health Professionals and Consumers, Inc.

The Myth of Confidentiality

HIPAA applauded for mandating uniform electronic transmissions, but raises privacy and security concerns