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19.05.2015, 11:09
| Banned | | Join Date: Sep 2014 Location: Zurich
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| | Health insurance breached my health confidentiality
I need legal advice
Yesterday I sent an email to my health insurance (HI) requesting a list of English fluent psychologists in the area.
In the HI office in my area - although their webpage is all in English to attract customers - NOBODY speaks English - called my boyfriend (we are not even married!) read and forwarded him my email. They DISCLOSED the content of my email to him! This is a HUGE & unauthorized breach of patient/customer's confidentiality. I did not tell him that I was considering the idea of seeking some counseling (due to my stress learning Deutsch). I wanted to keep it private not to concern him about it.
Luckily we have a great relationship and nothing happened but in the hypothetical case he was an abuser you can imagine how the fact the I was seeking for help would have ended...
I am a healthcare professional myself and I believe that what my HI did is illegal. I am considering to contact a lawyer. My HI will contact me tomorrow.
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19.05.2015, 11:15
| Forum Veteran | | Join Date: Jul 2014 Location: SoCal
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality | Quote: | |  | | | I need legal advice
Yesterday I sent an email to my health insurance (HI) requesting a list of English fluent psychologists in the area.
In the HI office in my area - although their webpage is all in English to attract customers - NOBODY speaks English - called my boyfriend (we are not even married!) read and forwarded him my email. They DISCLOSED the content of my email to him! This is a HUGE & unauthorized breach of patient/customer's confidentiality. I did not tell him that I was considering the idea of seeking some counseling (due to my stress learning Deutsch). I wanted to keep it private not to concern him about it.
Luckily we have a great relationship and nothing happened but in the hypothetical case he was an abuser you can imagine how the fact the I was seeking for help would have ended...
I am a healthcare professional myself and I believe that what my HI did is illegal. I am considering to contact a lawyer. My HI will contact me tomorrow. | | | | | Why did they have the phone number of your boyfriend?
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19.05.2015, 11:21
| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality
Bizarre indeed.
However, if learning German stresses you out so much- I'd change school or teacher before seeing a psychologist - a different approach to learning/teaching may well solve the problems more effectively.
Last edited by Odile; 19.05.2015 at 12:10.
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19.05.2015, 11:53
|  | Moddy Wellies | | Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: North Yorkshire
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality | Quote: | |  | | | I am considering to contact a lawyer. | | | | | Why would you need to do that?
I imagine what they did might well be illegal. Report it to the ombudsman and let them deal with it. https://secure.om-kv.ch/ | The following 3 users would like to thank mirfield for this useful post: | | 
19.05.2015, 12:23
| Junior Member | | Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Geneva
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality
We lived together in a small village. We got the insurance together as part of a Familie policy - although we have individual policy numbers. They know that he is Schweizer, and I might be the only foreigner in the whole village, so they basically used him as a translator instead of contacting another of their offices.
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19.05.2015, 12:26
| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality | Quote: | |  | | | We lived together in a small village. We got the insurance together as part of a Familie policy - although we have individual policy numbers. They know that he is Schweizer, and I might be the only foreigner in the whole village, so they basically used him as a translator instead of contacting another of their offices. | | | | | Wait, are you the OP? It sounds like you are answering for her. I don't get it | The following 6 users would like to thank for this useful post: | | 
19.05.2015, 12:29
|  | Forum Legend | | Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: ZH
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality | Quote: | |  | | | Wait, are you the OP? It sounds like you are answering for her. I don't get it  | | | | | The are both from South America so looks like duplicate accounts.
OP, as Mirfield suggested, contact the insurance Ombudsman if you're that annoyed. A lawyer will just cost you a lot of money. Or do you think you are due compensation?
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19.05.2015, 12:33
| Junior Member | | Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Geneva
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality
@Odile, my deutsch teacher is amazing! I can not imagine learning Deutsch with anybody else. I attend the school for months (August 2015) in daily basis. Also I have another weekly Skype teacher for conversations and I am constantly listening to deutsch podcasts… I am extremely frustrated with myself because I do not feel I am learning fast enough…No need to say that I learn Deutsch and l am surrounded by Swiss Deutsch speakers. I can not talk with any mamas & neighbours in the playground
Also I miss working plus I have 2 small children which luckily go to the Krippe.
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19.05.2015, 12:33
| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality | Quote: | |  | | | The are both from South America so looks like duplicate accounts. | | | | | That's what I thought.
Naughty, naughty
Edit: I see the op has been banned and we get Martxi to answer for her. Sigh.
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19.05.2015, 12:34
| Junior Member | | Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Geneva
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality
Sorry yes, I have 2 accounts. I can not remember the password of the other one…
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19.05.2015, 12:35
| Junior Member | | Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Geneva
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality
@grumpygrapefruit, well I work in the medical field and if I breached patient's confidentially probably my insurance would have to pay the patient a compensation.
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19.05.2015, 12:36
| Junior Member | | Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Geneva
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality
Op?
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19.05.2015, 12:37
| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality | Quote: | |  | | | Op? | | | | | Original Poster, or Original Post.
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19.05.2015, 12:50
|  | Moddy Wellies | | Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: North Yorkshire
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality | Quote: | |  | | | @grumpygrapefruit, well I work in the medical field and if I breached patient's confidentially probably my insurance would have to pay the patient a compensation. | | | | | Why? You already said it was no issue. What would they be compensating?
If what they did was illegal, then they need to answer to the law. Contact the ombudsman - or the police, if you feel stringly about it.
Anyway, it's not like you have the best history with lawyers.
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19.05.2015, 12:56
|  | Roastbeef & Yorkshire mod | | Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Neuchâtel
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality | Quote: | |  | | | Sorry yes, I have 2 accounts. I can not remember the password of the other one… | | | | | That's odd since you were clearly posting using both of them before the other account was banned. | The following 5 users would like to thank Belgianmum for this useful post: | | 
19.05.2015, 13:17
| Junior Member | | Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Geneva
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality
@Belgianmum, I was permanently log in in the other one from my iPhone. THis one is from my computer. Nothing dodgy here. No need to make a big deal.
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19.05.2015, 13:33
|  | Forum Legend | | Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Kt. Bern
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality | Quote: | |  | | | This is a HUGE & unauthorized breach of patient/customer's confidentiality. | | | | | Well there is patient/doctor and client/lawyer confidentiality, but I have never it applied to an insurance company.. I would imagine their duty does not go beyond that set out in the data protection laws... | Quote: | |  | | | ...so they basically used him as a translator instead of contacting another of their offices. | | | | | So this is not the first time then... have you objected on previous occasions?
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19.05.2015, 13:39
|  | Forum Legend | | Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Democratic Republic Kenistan
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality | Quote: | |  | | | Well there is patient/doctor and client/lawyer confidentiality, but I have never it applied to an insurance company.. I would imagine their duty does not go beyond that set out in the data protection laws...
So this is not the first time then... have you objected on previous occasions? | | | | | The OP has a great lawyer fee thread which is a giggle - and then posted recently about a tree in front of their balcony - which apparently they failed to notice when they viewed the apartment!!
I suspect the OP isn't the sharpest tool in the box and will spend their lives being disappointed that the rest of society doesn't protect them from themselves  | The following 8 users would like to thank dodgyken for this useful post: | | This user groans at dodgyken for this post: | | 
19.05.2015, 14:36
| Forum Legend | | Join Date: Oct 2014 Location: SG
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality
I wouldn't be surprised if you didn't remember giving your BFs email as your own, or instructing them to direct everything thru him because you're not speaking german (well enough). What does "family policy" mean?
Some other posts of yours:
- You bought an apartment but didn't notice the big tree outside so you want it cut down
- another thread is titled "RAV - Law?"
- "Dispute lawyer fees - URGENT" where you ask for advice but also say you are insured against a case dispute, so why ask on here in the first place
Add this thread including the duplicate ID - you very much look like a troll to me.
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19.05.2015, 20:51
|  | Forum Legend | | Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Kt. Bern
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| | Re: Health insurance breached my health confidentiality | Quote: | |  | | | The OP has a great lawyer fee thread which is a giggle - and then posted recently about a tree in front of their balcony - which apparently they failed to notice when they viewed the apartment!! | | | | | Some how I missed that one, now I'll have to go back and look for it |
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