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Research question

How do healthcare companies address privacy in their policies?

Background

Most organizations in the health care industry prioritize the privacy policy in every aspect of their health services. The organizations selected for this research are Mayo Clinic, United Health Group, and McKesson Corp. All of these organizations declare private policies on their website and assure all their clients/patients that there is no information regarding them or their heath that will be shared to third parties without their consent. For Mayo Clinic, it begins its privacy policy by first defining protected health information, which is, any information, whether paper. Electronic, or oral that is created or received by Mayo Clinic relating to the health care of a patient or patient payment relating to medical services. Therefore, Mayo clinic considers the privacy of patient as part of its main mission in meeting the patient needs and it has taken the necessary precautions against disclosure or inappropriate use of patient’s medical information.

Similarly, the UnitedHealth Group issues a clear privacy policy to its clients and disclaims that there is zero chance that the information regarding the patient health will be shared to third parties without their consent. The Company’s privacy policy clearly states that its main objective is to adhere to the laws and regulations regarding privacy of health care information and thus it applies every available resources to ensure that all data regarding health care of patients are protected and thoroughly guarded from any public intrusion. The most interesting aspect regarding the privacy policy is that they outline the few situations and circumstances under which they are likely to share the private information regarding the health of the clients, including when it is court order, or when the company is sold or merged with another company. However, all these situations will be notified to the individual holder of the information with clear explanation regarding the companies intentions. McKesson Corp is also another health organization that commits itself to guard the private information of their clients. The company explains the information that they collect from the customers including their health and health-related issues, their personal contact information, their work environment, and information that the persons shares on the internet. This explanation gives the patients an insight about the type of information that the company has regarding them, while assuring them that it will be kept confidential and private except in some circumstances where they will be notified in advance.

References

McKesson Corp Privacy notice. https://www.mckesson.com/About-McKesson/Privacy-Notice/

UnitedHealth Care Group Privacy information. https://www.uhc.com/privacy