Digital Rights Watch have welcomed reports that Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt will scrap the My Health Record system and introduce legislation that ensures patient privacy.
“This is excellent news, and vindication for the privacy experts, medical practitioners, concerned public and even members of the Minister’s own government, who have all outlined their privacy concerns with this rollout,” said Digital Rights Watch Chair Tim Singleton Norton.
The Minister has outlined that the changes will ensure no record can be released to police or government agencies for any purpose without a court order, and that if any Australian wishes to cancel their record, they will be able to do so permanently, with their record deleted from the system.
“This government has a long way to go if they wish to earn the trust of Australian citizens when it comes to handling personal information, but this is a good first step for the Minister to take,” he concluded.