Iowa's DHS Says It Will Guard Mental Health Records
Key points
- The Department of Human Services said it will tightly guard personal information on thousands of mental health patients.
- The agency wants to collect names, addresses, and other information on about 50,000 patients who receive mental health care paid for by the government.
- The agency said it needs the data to improve services, but patient advocates said it may jeopardize people's privacy.
- To address such concerns, DHS released a memo Friday summarizing the safeguards it plans to put in place.
The Department of Human Services said it will tightly guard personal information on thousands of mental health patients.
The agency wants to collect names, addresses, and other information on about 50,000 patients who receive mental health care paid for by the government.
The agency said it needs the data to improve services, but patient advocates said it may jeopardize people's privacy.
To address such concerns, DHS released a memo Friday summarizing the safeguards it plans to put in place.
It says fewer than five employees will have access to the information.
They will take out personally identifiable information before it is stored in a database.
In addition, a spokesperson said all 5,000 agency employees will undergo training on how to keep information
Written and revised by
Gerald Hurowitz, M.D.
Our doctors write and review articles for accuracy and keep them up to date.
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