PENNSYLVANIA LAW: Forces Doctors to HIDE what makes some of their patients sick!

For Pennsylvania's Doctors, a Gag Order on Fracking Chemicals

Under a new law, doctors in Pennsylvania can access information about chemicals used in natural gas extraction -- but they won't be able to share it with their patients...

...

The...law states that companies must disclose the identity and amount of any chemicals used in fracking fluids to any health professional that requests that information in order to diagnosis or treat a patient that may have been exposed to a hazardous chemical. But the provision in the new bill requires those health professionals to sign a confidentiality agreement stating that they will not disclose that information to anyone else -- not even the person they're trying to treat.

What a dysfunctional nation we have become! :shk:

It appears we are so far down the rabbit hole, it's hard to see how we will ever make our way out.



See also: The Conspiracy Before Your Nose: A Fracking Disaster in the Making!

Wow.

Wonder who got the bribes for this piece of work.

Can it be challenged in court?

reply to post by smyleegrl


If I understand this correctly, it was inserted into the original legislation passed by both state houses during conference:

The provision was not in the initial versions of the law debated in the state Senate or House in February; it was added in during conference between the two chambers, said State Senator Daylin Leach (D), which meant that many lawmakers did not even notice that this "broad, very troubling provision" had been added.

You wont make it out. And you know this to be the truth. Because you have not gotten to the bottom of the hole yet and you know you are already too deep to get out.

reply to post by loam


ok lets tone the rhetoric down just a little bit.

Obviously, the "recipe" for the fracking fluid is proprietary information. This is information, that if it were to be made public, would put the company at an economic disadvantage.

Just as obviously, if a person suspects this symptoms may be related to fracking fluid, a doctor would need to know the exact "recipe" to properly diagnose the patient.

What this law does is order the company to release the recipe to a doctor upon request but places the doctor responsible for not revealing the exact recipe.

There is NOTHING that stops the doctor from telling a patient that he has symptoms that appear to be related to exposure to fracking fluid and recommending treatment options. (or from telling the patient that his symptoms cannot be possibly caused by the fracking fluid used by a local company).

We really don't need the melodrama here.

Its like a doctor acquiring the recipe for fig newtons to be able to diagnose a patient who claims to be allergic to flour. The doctor needs to confirm that the company uses flour in the recipe but the patient has not need to know what the exact recipe is.

Tired of Control Freaks

reply to post by TiredofControlFreaks


Excellent post.

Knee-jerk reactions. They get us all.

reply to post by TiredofControlFreaks

Originally posted by TiredofControlFreaks
There is NOTHING that stops the doctor from telling a patient that he has symptoms that appear to be related to exposure to fracking fluid and recommending treatment options. (or from telling the patient that his symptoms cannot be possibly caused by the fracking fluid used by a local company).

Except, of course, the actual statute itself.

Which it is obvious you haven't bothered to read yet...

Here, let me make it easy for you...

OIL AND GAS (58 PA.C.S.) - OMNIBUS AMENDMENTS: Act of Feb. 14, 2012, P.L. 87, No. 13

(11) If a health professional determines that a medical emergency exists and the specific identity and amount of any chemicals claimed to be a trade secret or confidential proprietary information are necessary for emergency treatment, the vendor, service provider or operator shall immediately disclose the information to the health professional upon a verbal acknowledgment by the health professional that the information may not be used for purposes other than the health needs asserted and that the health professional shall maintain the information as confidential. The vendor, service provider or operator may request, and the health professional shall provide upon request, a written statement of need and a confidentiality agreement from the health professional as soon as circumstances permit, in conformance with regulations promulgated under this chapter.

I don't see a patient disclosure exception....do you?

Originally posted by TiredofControlFreaks
We really don't need the melodrama here.

Nor misrepresentations of the actual law.

Originally posted by TiredofControlFreaks
Its like a doctor acquiring the recipe for fig newtons to be able to diagnose a patient who claims to be allergic to flour. The doctor needs to confirm that the company uses flour in the recipe but the patient has not need to know what the exact recipe is.

Utter freaking nonsense.

The doctor in your example gets to disclose to the patient that FLOUR was the allergen responsible for the reaction.

Originally posted by TiredofControlFreaks
Tired of Control Freaks

Tired of Ideologues who bend the truth.

:shk:

This law doesn't protect 'recipes'...It protects potential abusers of the public health.


LAME.

Here's one perspective concerning the impact of the law:

PO EDITORIAL: Fracking gag order places doctors in ethical bind

Act 13, the law establishing an optional impact tax on gas drilling in Pennsylvania, reportedly contains a little-known provision that gives doctors access to information on the chemicals in the fracking fluid.

But it trades that information in return for confidentiality agreements prohibiting doctors from sharing what they learn with anyone - including, it seems, their patients. Doctors who violate the non-disclosure deals would be subject to penalties, and those who refuse to sign would be denied the information.

That means a doctor who manages to establish a link between fracking chemicals and specific or general public health impacts wouldn't be able to make those findings known.

The revelation comes amid concerns of the state medical community about a lack of data and research on the impacts of hydraulic fracking. In an February essay in The Patriot-News, Dr. Marilyn Heine, president of the Pennsylvania Medical Society, noted that she doesn't know what to tell patients with questions about local hydraulic fracking and their health. "We have no definitive answers to these questions because we lack data,"

And while Act 13 could provide those answers, it also denies doctors the safe legal standing to disseminate them.

reply to post by smyleegrl

Originally posted by smyleegrl
Wow.

Wonder who got the bribes for this piece of work.

Can it be challenged in court?

Maybe... I'm sure it eventually will be. Whether it's successful, who knows?

Concerning the bribes, you can read here:

FRACKING: Corruption a Part of Pennsylvania's Heritage

Originally posted by smyleegrl
reply to post by TiredofControlFreaks

 

Excellent post.

Knee-jerk reactions. They get us all.

Don't let anyone lead you by the nose.

Do your OWN research!

:shk:

So, let me get this straight. I'm a big, greedy corporation, and I use toxic, carcinogenic chemicals in my quest to rape the environment for natural gas. Because I use a proprietary formula to accomplish my task, if somebody gets grievously ill, or there is a cancer cluster in which little kids are dying, I was clever enough to buy off a few politicians so they could sneak in a provision which prevents medical professionals from sharing what it is that is making the population sick or killing their children.....Because, after all, it is more important for me to protect my special fracking formula than it is for a patient to know what is making them sick or killing them.

How dare people get upset over it? How dare they make a drama over it! It is my special secret, and I don't give a rat's ass who gets sick or dies from me forcing this poison into their environment.

Did I get it right? Isn't that EXACTLY what the natural gas companies think?

Meanwhile, down here in Texas, natural gas is at an all-time low in price, and oil fields all over west Texas are burning off the natural gas from the oil wells because they have no use for it, since it cannot be shipped unless it is turned into liquid form (like propane), and there is no financial incentive to do a damned thing with it except burn it off into the open air.

Wow - this is similar to laws in other states being proposed that say if a doctor thinks there is a good chance of someone having an abortion if they tell them the condition of the fetus they will be able to lie about it.

Thank you loam, for posting this, as well as putting TiredofControlFreaks in his place, he clearly has no humanity for the common man, who will most certainly get sick off of these 'fracking' fluids and will not be treated properly by their physicians. He has reserved his compassion for helpless corporations who would suffer if people knew what was making them ill. The only way to stop being sick in that sort of situation would be to stop drinking your water and/or move away from the affected area.

reply to post by OrganicAnagram33


You're welcome.

Giving him the benefit of the doubt, I'll assume he didn't intentionally lie, but was merely uninformed and confused.

But even that really just ticks me off on issues as important as this one.

More reaction from the medical community:

“I have never seen anything like this in my 37 years of practice,” says Dr. Helen Podgainy, a pediatrician from Coraopolis, Pa. She says it’s common for physicians, epidemiologists, and others in the health care field to discuss and consult with each other about the possible problems that can affect various populations. Her first priority, she says, “is to diagnose and treat, and to be proactive in preventing harm to others.” The new law, she says, not only “hinders preventative measures for our patients, it slows the treatment process by gagging free discussion.”

Psychologists are also concerned about the effects of fracking and the law’s gag order. “We won’t know the extent of patients becoming anxious or depressed because of a lack of information about the fracking process and the chemicals used,” says Kathryn Vennie of Hawley, Pa., a clinical psychologist for 30 years. She says she is already seeing patients “who are seeking support because of the disruption to their environment.” Anxiety in the absence of information, she says, “can produce both mental and physical problems.”

The law is not only “unprecedented,” but will “complicate the ability of health department to collect information that would reveal trends that could help us to protect the public health,” says Dr. Jerome Paulson, director of the Mid-Atlantic Center for Children’s Health and the Environment at the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C. Dr. Paulson, also professor of pediatrics at George Washington University, calls the law “detrimental to the delivery of personal health care and contradictory to the ethical principles of medicine and public health.” Physicians, he says, “have a moral and ethical responsibility to protect the health of the public, and this law precludes us from doing all we can to protect the public.” He has called for a moratorium on all drilling until the health effects can be analyzed.

“The confidentiality agreements are worrisome,” says Peter Scheer, a journalist/lawyer who is executive director of the First Amendment Coalition. Physicians who sign the non-disclosure agreements and then disclose the possible risks to protect the community can be sued for breech of contract, and the companies can seek both injunctions and damages, says Scheer.

In pre-trial discovery motions, a company might be required to reveal to the court what it claims are trade secrets and proprietary information, with the court determining if the chemical and gas combinations really are trade secrets or not. The court could also rule that the contract is unenforceable because it is contrary to public policy, which places the health of the public over the rights of an individual company to protect its trade secrets, says Scheer. However, the legal and financial resources of the natural gas corporations are far greater than those of individuals, and they can stall and outspend most legal challenges.

FRACKING: Pennsylvania Gags Physicians

WHAT A COMPLETE DISGRACE!!!

Amazing. Simply, amazing.

this is unequivocally the scariest thing ive read in a while. i have friends and family in that whole area. watch the movie GasLand. pretty eye-opening flick. i wonder if this stuff is as harmful as living in city pollution. if theyre making legal preparations as bold as this, you just know theres going to be some serious effects.

Sounds like the Hippocratic oath does not apply the sub-humans which are not a part of the chosen elite.
Whatever happens to sub- humans has no consequence!
[Just a little irony to keep the ball rolling.]

I said it in a thread earlier, and I will say it again, to the frustration of some...This is a product of capitalism, a product of which is profit over people...Fracking makes these companies more money, so they will do everything they can, even legally, to keep the process going as long as possible.

This is just another example of large corporations being intertwined with the state. Hopefully the people will wake up soon, and realize that collectively they hold ALL the power, and maybe from there we can switch to a different type of economy.

I would propose a more socialistic avenue, but in terms of realism, here is what I say: We start making companies and corporations co-operative entities. No paying CEO's and executives millions of dollars. The people make the decisions and run the business themselves, and distribute the profits accordingly. This is part of a system touted by economist Richard Wolff, and I highly recommend those of you who are serious about "change" for the better look into what he, and others, have to say. I chose him for prominence, as well as his ability to articulate his points fluently and fluidly to the everyday "worker".

reply to post by JiggyPotamus


Any of this is a product of Capitalism? Thats just hooey and getting rid of capitalism to embrace the ideology of such 'great minds' as Che Guevara and Uncle Ho or Stalin won't solve anything. If anything, it'll make it worse. Some of the most toxic and heavily contaminated places on Earth are found in the former Soviet Union and areas of Eastern Europe.

This is just outright greed, corruption and political thievery that people are doing nothing about. The same state and local politicians are re-elected over and over again while people complain about Congress. Seems it's always everyone else's Congress though and so nothing changes.

How many times was Murtha re-elected? I'm sure he had absolutely nothing to do with anything relating to this whole toxic stew being blasted into the bedrock beneath the state of Pennsylvania.

Corruption doesn't need ideology or political party. It's everywhere and at the moment....It's winning.

They've already Fracked up Susquahana PA and the Susquahana river going through Binghamton and Baltimore. And now they're after the Hudson and Deleware.

Why? To make water undrinkable so 'they' can sell it. Water is a Sacred Thing (Starhawk) and its under attack by the 1% malinialists and stewards (manipulated so-called "Christians" and 1%'ers).

Nothing really new here.

Big pharma, who control doctors, are in the business of making money. That means they have no intention of having a perfectly healthy population and putting themselves out of business.

Doctors are always told promote things that lead to illness, and to suppress cures for diseases so why is this any different?

As soon as you stop viewing corporations and those they control as gods and start seeing them for the corrupt people they are, everything starts to make sense...