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The Latest...Press CoveragePsychiatrist Wins Privacy Fight with HMO Pennsylvania Psychiatrist Takes Magellan to Court Over Confidentiality of Records Psychiatrist Prevails in Case To Protect Patient Privacy NCQA Site Visit Requirements Change Judge Orders Magellan Highmark to Reinstate PPS Member Court Documents |
From The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, "Legal Whispers" by Celeste Whiteford, Sunday September 24, 2000HIGHMARK HITS A LOW MARKA Pittsburgh psychiatrist who has practiced here for a quarter of a century is now suing a health-maintenance organization for slander and breaching a professional contract. Dr. Daniel S. Shrager has obtained a temporary injunction ordering Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield to reinstate him on its "credentialed list." Highmark nixed Shrager from the list after he refused to allow the company to inspect his confidential patient files without a promise of confidentiality. Shrager claims that Highmark wrote letters and telephoned Shrager's clients advising patients that they should seek another doctor but not telling them why. Shrager's partner, nurse-therapist Dee Perotta, says that contacting a psychiatrist's patients can be particularly dangerous because it can signal that the patient has been abandoned by his therapist. "This can be very threatening to a vulnerable patient, and could have devastating psychological results," she said. Shrager claimed Highmark conspired to harm his medical practice. He is asking for more than $25,00 in damages. |
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