My Health Record will need a court order for access, Greg Hunt says

The Federal Government has moved to allay concerns about privacy protections in its My Health Record system, announcing changes to allow the deletion of records and restrict government agencies’ access to patient data.

Health Minister Greg Hunt met with doctors from the Australian Medical Association and College of General Practitioners last night to discuss privacy concerns about the Government’s online health database, and announced a number of changes to the legislation surrounding the system.

People will now be able to withdraw from My Health Record after the opt-out period ends and have all information on their electronic health record deleted.

Under the original plan, some basic information about all records would have been kept, even if a patient asked for it to be deleted.

The legislation will also be changed to ensure police and government agencies cannot access information against a patient’s wish without a court order.

The electronic health record could include information such as prescriptions, allergies and medical summaries.

“The Digital Health Agency’s policy is clear and categorical — no documents have been released in more than six years and no documents will be released without a court order,” Mr Hunt said in a statement.

“This will be enshrined in legislation. This change to the My Health Record Act will therefore remove any ambiguity on this matter.”

Concern about potential problems with privacy had been growing, with claims police and other agencies would be able to access data without a court order or a warrant.

The current legislation does not specifically state that a court order is required to access a patient’s My Health Record.

This morning, Mr Hunt said he hoped the extra privacy protections would end the controversy over My Health Record.

“We’ve moved very quickly to listen to the concerns of doctors,” he told AM.

Hunt insists changes unnecessary, but legislation is now iron-clad

The Health Minister maintained there were no real problems with the first incarnation of My Health Record, but said he was happy to provide “additional reassurances” on privacy to doctors and patients.

“After six years and with 6 million records there haven’t been any releases, so it’s to deal with a question some have raised — could this ever happen?” Mr Hunt said.

“It couldn’t, but we will make that iron-clad, crystal clear and unbreakable in legislation by strengthening Labor’s 2012 legislation.”

Australian Medical Association president Tony Bartone said the Government had now dealt with doctors’ concerns about privacy.

“After the assurances we received last night and the commitment to strengthen the legislation, we can now move forward and have certainty around the protections to the privacy of those records that our patients expect,” he said.

The Government has also indicated it is likely to extend the opt out period for My Health Record for an additional month beyond the current deadline of October 15.

The Federal Opposition has previously called for the opt-out period to be extended to give people more time to decide whether they want their medical records stored electronically.

Deputy Labor Leader Tanya Plibersek said while the Labor Party had not seen the detail of the changes, it would welcome anything that boosted consumer confidence in the system’s privacy protections.

“In principle, anything that gives health consumers more confidence that their information is being kept privately is very important,” she said.