- United States
- Ohio
- Letter
I am writing to express my strong opposition to recent efforts by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to secure federal access to detailed, identifiable patient health data from state-run health information exchanges.
This initiative is a profound violation of medical privacy and an unprecedented expansion of federal surveillance. Citizens have a fundamental right to expect that the intimate details of their medical records—shared with doctors in confidence—will not be mined by political appointees at HHS.
This initiative represents a dangerous breach of personal liberty and a massive overreach of executive power. On top of that, this federal push directly undermines state sovereignty by attempting to bypass state-level privacy laws and override individual patient consent.
Furthermore, it is an unacceptable misuse of taxpayer dollars to funnel millions in federal grants toward validating autism theories that have been thoroughly debunked by decades of rigorous, peer-reviewed scientific research. The government should not be using public funds to aggregate the private data of 90% of the American public to fuel a pointless personal agenda.
I urge you to use your legislative and oversight authority to:
1. Demand Full Transparency: Force HHS to disclose what data is being requested, which states are cooperating, and how much taxpayer money is being spent.
2. Defend Patient Consent: Oppose any federal attempt to bypass state-level privacy protections or access medical records without explicit, individual patient authorization.
3. Stop Defunding Science: Defund and halt the use of federal resources for scientifically baseless investigations that distract from legitimate public health challenges.
Please stand with your constituents, defend constitutional privacy rights, and stop this weaponization of our personal health data.