DHH responds to Times’ criticism of reporting

Dear Editor,

No one expects to end up on the front page of the newspaper just for going to the emergency room. Our health status, our struggle with infection and disease, and changes to our bodies are all among the most private and personal matters experienced in life. Every one of us would be shocked and appalled if our doctor or our public health agency began publicizing that personal health information to our friends and family, to our bosses and employees, or to the news media. Strong privacy in our health information is a reasonable expectation, but it is an expectation that is becoming increasingly difficult to satisfy in the incredibly interconnected world in which we live.

There are protections, however, designed to keep your private health information private. Those protections are built in at the federal level thanks to a law called the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. That law, commonly called HIPAA, prohibits health professionals and public agencies from disclosing your health information to anyone but you, other health professionals and other public agencies. That is the law that governed how the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH) handled a recent outbreak of viral meningitis among children in Region 3 of the state, which includes Assumption, Lafourche, St. James, St. John, St. Mary and Terrebonne parishes.

The Times recently criticized how DHH handled that outbreak because we were unwilling to release specific information about where the children lived and at what hospitals those children sought care. While we respect and appreciate the thorough coverage of The Times, we will not reveal personal health information of Louisiana residents simply for the purposes of improving the news coverage of any media outlet. Unless wide, immediate publication is necessary to protect public health, DHH instead works directly with the local hospitals and affected community members to contain and eliminate the risk.

In addition to HIPAA, which imposes jail time or thousands of dollars in fines on anyone who violates it, there are serious considerations that govern how we share public health information and with whom we share it. Those considerations include:

1. You and your child have a right to privacy. Even if federal law did not prohibit DHH from telling reporters information about your child, where they go to school, where they go to camp or what parish they live in, Louisiana law has its own set of protections.

2. Publishing patient information can seriously threaten public health and safety.

3. Giving out information that seems general can still result in your privacy being violated.

4. Identifying a hospital where someone receives care may discourage other people from going to that hospital, which can be dangerous.

What often doesn’t make the front page of the newspaper is the thorough, consistent communication with parents, doctors and hospitals who are dealing with something like viral

meningitis. DHH trains hospital workers across the state on how to report infectious disease cases. We have staff in each region that work with hospitals and go on-site at a hospital in the event of an outbreak.

DHH also sends infectious disease specialists to talk to families, doctors and community organizations when there is an outbreak. The best way to prevent the spread of infectious diseases is to go to the source of the outbreak and work to stop its spread there.

Ultimately, if there were ever to be a serious infectious disease outbreak that warranted strict, dramatic action, Louisiana’s State Health Office is prepared to handle it. We saw evidence of that in the fall of 2014 when the State required individuals who had traveled to Ebola-impacted countries to stay at home and allow public health nurses to monitor their symptoms. That system worked and it worked without violating the privacy of any individual.

Finally, there are a number of steps you can take every day to help fight disease whether or not DHH or the news reports an immediate threat. Wash your hands frequently. Cover your mouth when you sneeze with a tissue or your elbow. Don’t share food or drinks with others. These steps seem simple, but they are the best ways to prevent the spread of any illness, from the common cold to the seasonal flu or viral meningitis. These simple strategies along with our work with our health care and community partners help the state ensure that both health and personal privacy are protected.

Kathy H. Kliebert

Secretary, Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals Baton Rouge