Vermont police admit to inappropriate pharmaceutical prescription investigation
HIPAA Weekly Advisor, December 31, 2007
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Vermont state police have admitted that their blanket requests for pharmacy records were inappropriate, according to a December 9 article by the Associated Press (AP) in the Worcester Telegram & Gazette.
Police detectives asked three pharmacists to disclose records as part of a drug fraud investigation, though there was no evidence that a crime had been committed, according to the AP. The detectives requested lists of customers who purchased certain prescription drugs from the pharmacists, but Rick Hogle, owner of Fairfax Pharmacy, chose not to provide the information in an effort to protect patient privacy.
According to a 1967 state law in Vermont, law enforcement investigators are permitted access to prescription drug information, but federal regulations allow pharmacists to choose whether or not to cooperate with the investigation, according to the AP.
HIPAA permits pharmacists to disclose prescription information in certain cases, such as for a criminal investigation. But that type of disclosure is a judgment call left up to the individual pharmacist, said Secretary of State Deborah Markowitz, who oversees the pharmaceutical industry in Vermont, according to a December 6 Rutland Herald article.
To read the AP article, click here.
To read the Rutland Herald article, click here.
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