North america : an insurer reveals the hiv status of 12,000 clients

razihusin/epictura

Published the 26.08.2017 at 13: 10

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VIHassureurs

An error is particularly regrettable. In the United States, an insurer was required to present its flattest apology to thousands of patients after having revealed inadvertently their hiv status. The facts date back to the end of the month of July. Postal mail are passed on to insureds of Aetna with HIV, for their mean a change in access to treatment.

Except that the envelope, through the transparent window provided for the mailing address, it gives rise to a few lines of confidential mail, however, very explicit. ” when filling prescriptions for HIV Medic … “. The photo below, provided by the AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania on its website, allows you to give an account of the content of the blunder.

AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania

Everything is thus left an over-sized window, or a letter misplaced in the envelope. The mail has been sent to 12 000 people. “We sincerely apologize to the people affected by this problem zip and exposed inadvertently the personal health information of some of our members,” said Aetna in a news release.

“Traumatic risk”

The insurer states having conducted a “comprehensive review” of its procedures ” to ensure that a similar event does not reoccur “. Atnéa states that no other information, if it is not these few words, could not be visible through the window.

Not sure, however, that these excuses are enough. A rights group, The Legal Action Center, has already announced that complaints have been filed at the local level and federal, and other legal actions may follow. “The violation of their privacy by Aetna has devastated the people involved, including the neighborhood and the family have learned of information that is very intimate on their health,” said the group, which refers to ” a traumatic risk tangible “.