Medical Groups Ask for Exemption From FTC's 'Red Flags' Regulations

The American Medical Association, American Dental Association and American Veterinary Medical Association in a joint letter to members of the Federal Trade Commission requested that health professionals be excluded from the "Red Flags" rules, which require many businesses to take specific steps to minimize identity theft, Health Data Management reports (Health Data Management, 1/29).

The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 mandated the Red Flags rule, which requires creditors and financial institutions to enact procedures to identify, detect and respond to indicators of identity theft. FTC classifies hospitals and physicians as creditors because they accept deferred payment for services (iHealthBeat, 7/30/09).

In the letter to FTC Chair Jon Leibowitz, the medical groups state that the Red Flags rule "imposes an unjustified, unfunded mandate on health professionals for detecting and responding to identity theft." ihealthbeat