Prof. Goodwin Testifies to U. S. Senate Field Hearing

Professor Michele Goodwin, an expert in bioethics and the role of law in promotion and regulation of medicine, science and biotechnology, will participate on an expert panel at a U. S. Senate field hearing chaired by U. S. Senator Al Franken at the Minnesota State Capitol today. The hearing entitled "Ensuring Patients' Access to Care and Privacy: Are Federal Laws Protecting Patients?" will examine whether current federal laws effectively protect patients' access to care and privacy. Sen. Franken, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, arranged the hearing after Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson issued a report examining whether Chicago-based Accretive Health Inc. violated federal health, debt collection and privacy laws. Accretive Health was formerly a contractor with Fairview Health Services in Minnesota. Prof. Goodwin has written about this issue on her Chronicle blog http://chronicle.com/blogs/brainstorm/stalking-patients-at-hospitals/47214"