HB 91: Invasion of Privacy (IRIS)

Do you know what IRIS is?

It is a sneaky invasion of privacy regarding one’s private health information (PHI). IRIS has historically been an immunization registry for children’s vaccination records, but is now being used to assimilate the medical information regarding one’s vaccinations (or lack thereof) without the knowledge or consent of a patient or their guardians. Our children’s vaccination records are already in IRIS, and IRIS is expanding to all adults in the State of Idaho as well.

That’s right! The Legislature wants to expand their data tracking information to include all adults with HB 91. The newest invasion of privacy has passed committee and will be heard on the house floor Feb 21st. If passed it will move onto the Senate Health Committee and Senate Floor. Time is limited we MUST TELL LEGISLATORS TO OPPOSE HB 91 the bill that will require the State tracking of the  immunizations of all adults.  

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Talking Points:

1) No other pharmaceutical product use is reported to the state like this and this is a violation of medical privacy.

2)  CDC has openly stated that vaccine registries are a tool to identify areas of “undervaccination” so that they can be “addressed” and brought into “compliance.”   https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6133a2.htm  The healthcare choices Idahoans make are Idahoans’ and there is no need for our choices to be “addressed” or brought into “compliance”. This is an attack on our health freedoms disguised as just a little information gathering. Given that the pharmaceutical companies have nearly 300 vaccines in development and would like to see those used by the entire populace, it is not hard to see why CDC wants to monitor the public’s use of vaccines so it can “address areas of undervaccination.”

3) We know from the problems many parents have reported that many parents have no idea that IRIS (the Idaho Immunization Registry) even exists, no idea that their children’s information is being entered into the system, no idea that the registry is voluntary and that they may opt out completely yet Idaho Code 39-4803 explicitly states that the registry is voluntary. Several years ago we fought the extension of IRIS to adults because code was already not being followed and we won.   https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title39/T39CH48/SECT39-4803/

4) Given violations of I.C. 39-4803 pertaining to IRIS and children, we are very concerned that adults will not be aware there is a system, that the system is opt out, and that their private medical information will be entered into it. If they aren’t aware the system even exists or that it is voluntary, how is the system truly voluntary? If parents are not being informed of the existence and voluntary nature of IRIS, why should we trust that this information will be explained to adults?

5) There is nothing in HB 91 that explicitly requires those who administer vaccines to notify vaccine recipients of the existence of IRIS or the fact that IRIS is voluntary but that vaccine recipients must opt out. 

6) There is nothing in HB 91 that ensures vaccine administrators follow the law. Who will check and ensure the law is followed?

7) We already know that the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare has violated code with respect to IRIS. Several years ago when Dr. Christine Hahn of the Department of Health and Welfare testified in front of the Senate Health and Welfare Committee, she stated that IRIS had already entered the personal private information of Idaho adults who had received a flu vaccine into the system. This is illegal. There is no code that allows for the private medical information of adults to be entered into IRIS. If they’ve already broken the law, why should we trust that they will follow it now?