COVID Killed Health Privacy and Choice
Health privacy exists to protect individuals from discrimination. Health choice exists to protect bodily autonomy.
And COVID is killing both.
The ADA and similar state and local laws prohibit discrimination against individuals, and guarantee employee rights to medical privacy. Employers are therefore restricted from inquiring about employees’ medical history and medical conditions.
Health privacy lows protect people with Hep B and HIV and other medical issues from being discriminated against, denied employment or fired due to their health status.
In Tennessee, health care providers must keep all patient records strictly confidential.
Additionally, bodily autonomy and health privacy are protected by the Constitution.
“Body autonomy is a critical component of the right to privacy protected by the Constitution, as decided in Griswold v. Connecticut (1965), McFall v. Shimp (1978), and of course Roe v. Wade (1973). Griswold struck down “Comstock laws” which prohibited the use of any form of contraception, citing its interference in “marital privacy.”
“Although the Bill of Rights does not explicitly mention “privacy”, Justice William O. Douglas wrote for the majority that the right was to be found in the “penumbras” and “emanations” of other constitutional protections.”
American law prohibits the rights of an individual to supersede the bodily autonomy of another individual. As the cases above established. No matter how many lives it saves. A person can’t be forced to donate blood, bone marrow or organs for instance.
Yet in COVID, world-wide, health privacy and choice is being thrown out the window. Now strangers, store-fronts, neighbors, employers believe it is their right to involve themselves in someone else’s health.
In Chattanooga, there was recently a viral video of a woman dragged across the floor for refusing to put on a mask. A mother was tased at her son’s football game for refusing a mask. In Florida, a woman was pinned to the ground by police officers while her teenage daughter screamed and cried, and then arrested for not wearing a mask, which is not a law.
A mask is a medical device. Are the private entities violating free choice, medical establishments? If not, how can they require medical devices? Are they then, practicing medicine without a license? Do they then, assume liability for health issues that arise as a result?
Did the women have asthma? Did they have PTSD? Did they have a medical exemption? Did they already have COVID and have antibodies making them the safest people to be around?
Due to health privacy laws it should be none of anyone’s business.
A teacher and myself went for coffee and were denied service. We were told to walk through the drive-thru. What this type of medical discrimination is creating is a second class citizenship based off of health choice.
Do we still have health choice? According to the Constitution, bodily autonomy, medical discrimination and health privacy laws, we should.
Currently, local healthcare monopolies are denying “the right to try” which was made law in 2015 and named for a local man who died of ALS. The right to try allows for a person to try alternative treatments if the alternative without trying is death.
In New York, a physician won in court on behalf of his patient to try Ivermectin, and as a result the patient survived.
Yet locally, people are being denied this right, and as a result have died.
It appears COVID is killing health choice, health privacy and bodily autonomy. And ultimately our Constitutional rights.
Although COVID-19 is thought to be a temporary illness, due to possible discrimination, ADA’s privacy obligations should be abided by. These laws and rights should be upheld.
Ticketmaster, and several airlines have announced they will require a medical procedure of their clients before they can use their services. Medical discrimination. Abolishing choice and privacy. Are they then liable?
Health id’s and passports have been created by tech companies to enforce these policies and the government has toyed with implementing their use.
A New York waitress was just fired because she was pregnant and didn’t feel safe having an experimental product, with emergency approval, not tested on pregnant women. And now even the Vatican is saying it will fire employees who don’t submit.
These obligations and laws are being overlooked and there is a need for legislation to address these issues. Currently, there are two pieces of legislation entered to accomplish this very thing in Tennessee. HB 794/SB 320 is a medical discrimination bill looking to protect consumers from medical discrimination.
Businesses have been decimated by COVID and this bill will help these businesses get back to business and not have to worry about regulating another persons’ health. tennesseestands.org/freemybusiness
Additionally, there is a bill HB 1147 and SB 1302 which will make it unlawful for an employer to require a COVID vaccine by threatening adverse actions.
COVID has killed enough. We don’t need it to kill our health privacy, bodily autonomy, health choice, right to work, right to the pursuit of life, liberty and happiness, or our humanity. Let’s get back to taking control of our own health. Limiting our risk factors by changing our lifestyle, our habits, diet and exercise. And encouraging our neighbor to do the same. That is how we create a healthy community. Personal responsibility and the boundaries of individual rights. I support this legislation. I support health choice, health privacy and bodily autonomy. It keeps us in our own lane. It keeps us free.
Sources:
http://www.healthinfolaw.org/state-topics/43%2C63
https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/coronavirus-and-employee-privacy-laws-83839/
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/new-york-city-waitress-fired-after-not-getting-covid-19-n1258155
https://www.travelandleisure.com/travel-news/dr-fauci-covid-vaccine-passports-required-future-travel
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/vatican-covid-19-vaccine-fire_n_602f0225c5b673b19b6725be
https://www.beacontn.org/right-to-try-law-takes-effect/
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ohio-woman-tased-not-wearing-mask-football-game-arrested/
https://www.wrcbtv.com/story/43344484/caught-on-camera-woman-dragged-out-of-chattanooga-bar-for-not-wearing-mask
https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/touring/9481166/ticketmaster-vaccine-check-concerts-plan/