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Retirees and more: Musk is after your health data now [1]
['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']
Date: 2025-02-05
A Wall Street Journal headline announced, "DOGE Aides Search Medicare Agency Payment Systems for Fraud." The story went on to say, "Representatives of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency have been working at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services [CMS], where they have gotten access to key payment and contracting systems, according to people familiar with the matter."
So now, the script kiddies are "aides"?
The Journal [paywalled] wrote that CMS "is a highly politically and economically sensitive agency. It is the nerve center of much of the nation’s complex healthcare economy, with outlays of about $1.5 trillion in fiscal 2024, or about 22% of the federal total. With around 6,710 employees, it oversees Medicare, the health coverage program for older and disabled Americans and Medicaid, for lower-income enrollees, among other areas. Many veteran CMS staffers have worked there for decades." The article continued, "One of the people familiar with DOGE’s work at CMS said that, to their knowledge, Musk’s allies hadn’t yet been given access to databases that include identifiable personal health information of Medicare or Medicaid enrollees. DOGE also hadn’t yet accessed a sensitive accounting system called HIGLAS, or the Healthcare Integrated General Ledger Accounting System, this person said."
"to their knowledge...hadn't YET been given access...to personally identifiable health information...."
HIPPAA. Privacy Act. That would be illegal.
In that regard, I'd like to repeat some conversation under another diary today about how Musk's activities violating the Espionage Act and Privacy Act, as well as the shutdown of agencies without Congressional authorization, might be stopped -- the Supreme Court's "coronation" notwithstanding.
Will put that in comments.
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[1] Url:
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/2/5/2301688/-Retirees-and-more-Musk-is-after-your-health-data-now?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web
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