Debbie Dingell: “This medical privacy provision has no more assurance of protection of the ordinary citizen or patient than does a lace…”

“This medical privacy provision has no more assurance of protection of the ordinary citizen or patient than does a lace doily of stopping a flood. The simple fact of the matter is existing law is better than the provision that we are talking about. And I would observe something else. Very shortly the provisions of HIPAA will kick in and the secretary will come forward with decent regulations which will protect the people. I am not going to enact a fraud, sham or delusion of the magnitude that we have before us with regard to medical health care protection and protection of medical information when I know full well that existing law is better and that further improvements will be coming along when the secretary issues her regulation.”