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Why Chinese Hackers Would Want US Hospital Patient Data
itwbennett (1594911) writes In a follow-up to yesterday's story about the Chinese hackers who stole hospital data of 4.5 million patients, IDG News Service's Martyn Williams set out to learn why the data, which didn't include credit card information, was so valuable. The answer is depressingly simple: people without health insurance can potentially get treatment by using medical data of one of the hacking victims. John Halamka, chief information officer of the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and chairman of the New England Healthcare Exchange Network, said a medical record can be worth between $50 and $250 to the right customer — many times more than the amount typically paid for a credit card number, or the cents paid for a user name and password. "If I am one of the 50 million Americans who are uninsured ... and I need a million-dollar heart transplant, for $250 I can get a complete medical record including insurance company details," he said.
This article sounds more like a lame attempt to justify obamacare than anything else. "See, we should have universal care because hackers!"
I am so glad I live in a country where the most I will ever pay for non-elective medical care is the price of the prescription (currently £8.05). Heart attack with a week in intensive care? Won't cost me a penny. Broken my leg, need a cast and physiotherapy? Won't cost me a penny.
Me too, and I live in the USA. My gold plated insurance plan (that any decent employer needs to pay for if they want to seek talent that will benefit them in any way) lets me sleep soundly at night. So who cares if people who don't want to work for a living won't get this kind of care? Keep your hands off of my class warfare! If poor people want healthcare, they should get a good job. Or, at least, join a labor union! The problem is that poor people are pretty notorious for their lack of planning. They need some incentive to get to work on time, so how is that my fault? Oh btw how is that whole unemployment thing going for you, Britface?