Your medical records

The World Privacy Forum has released a plain-spoken online guide that can help people regain some control over their health (medical) records.

The guide, a year in the making, takes on the less-than-fun challenge of dissecting complicated privacy rules created by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), a 1996 federal statute that set data-privacy and security rules for key players in the U.S. healthcare system.

The new guide explains patient rights and provides practical advice about how to defend those rights using the law as well as basic social skills and common sense.  It is easy to follow, simple to understand, and answers common questions patients present.

Read it and share with everyone you know.