The Federal Government has passed new My Health Record privacy and security protections through the Senate.
The Federal Health Minister Mr Greg Hunt stated in a Media Release dated 15 November 2018 that (Media Release) these privacy measures “further protect the health information of Australians”.
The new privacy measures include:
- tougher penalties for those that misuse the system;
- strengthening provisions to safeguard against domestic violence;
- prohibiting employers from requesting and using health information from an individual’s My Health Record;
- ensuring no health information or de-identified data can be released to insurers.
The senate has also passed amendments that law enforcement agencies can only access a person’s My Health Record with a warrant or court order, and anyone who chooses to cancel a record at any time will have that record permanently deleted.
Read the Media Release here.