|
It's official. After 3 months of back and forth, a major medical provider has elected to drop me as a patient for not having a Google or Apple device. It is unclear if this is legal, but it is very clearly discriminatory and unethical. Any tech journalists or lawyers interested in this? I would like to do anything I can to ensure this never happens to anyone else. 311 comments
12
@lrvick Assuming that you are in US (based on the absurdity of the situation and your lack of need to mention country explicitly) this can even go to EFF.  @lrvick Are they damanding that you install their Android or IOs app? It strikes me that one of the watchdogs might be interested in this. Perhaps OSHA? @lrvick Yeah, when my Dad had dementia he was going to have a smart phone. Really? Do these people understand that not everyone can or should do things their way? I refuse to engage with my medical providers via apps or texts. If I lose a provider, I hope to find an alternative. @lrvick spreading the word about this probably illegal action... @lrvick I've had this happen with web browsers; companies whose online tools will only work if I'm using Webkit. I'm not surprised to hear about this further contraction of service.  @lrvick This situation is absolutely unacceptable. I hope that the legislation will be adapted accordingly to prevent such practices. π€¨ @lrvick The exact same thing happened at the medical centre I go to here. They were forcing people to use an app to book an appointment, when I refused and made a fuss they finally booked it like they have been for years via the receptionist that was sitting there, disgusting. @lrvick It's not only unethical. It's appalling and disgusting. @meanmicio @lrvick How are you accessing the internet w/o an Android or Apple device? There are programs where you can get an Android tablet for very little money. For example, T-mobile offers them for free with a $25/month line, so you wouldn't even need to find a wifi Hotspot. And AARP had an ad in a recent issue of their magazine about a tablet for seniors that was just $20 total if you have wifi. Those are just 2 of several options. @timgatewood @lrvick Yes. I access Internet without Google or Apple. You can use @volla or @PINE64 as your phones, and the #pinetime as your smartwatch. Use Libre, #privacy respecting operating systems. @meanmicio @lrvick @volla @PINE64 Are you here in the USA? I ask because I have never heard of any of those here. Also, I'm sorry that it was unclear that I was addressing just the economic aspects in response to your comment that this sort of policy hurts those who cannot afford the tech. Maybe not everyone can get the tech, but there are options that make it more accessible than you might think. Someone at the clinic legal or risk dept. must have seen this blowing up, or they saw the formal complaint I filed with the California Board of Medicine. They suddenly offered to take me back as a patient on the condition that I sign a form that indemnifies them of any responsibility if they fail to contact me in a timely manner because of my choice to use "non standard communication" methods like phone or email. Hard pass. They will get an email to transfer records to another provider soon. Priority 1 for me is to get an alternative provider secured, and get back into desired treatment. On the other side of completed treatment when no one can blackball me, I have names to name, to make sure a strong message is sent to never treat anyone like this again. @elliot Supposedly they have ceased using any communication methods to talk to patients other than the app, and I would be creating confusion or something. Not my problem they got everyone to agree to a duopoly. I do not, and expect timely service like anyone else.  @lrvick Practices that are in medicine for profit just don't care about patients. It's completely the opposite of the way medicine is supposed to work. @lrvick " "non standard communication" methods like phone or email." WTF, how does that work? phone and email are standard communication methods, the health care provider hell bent on using a bespoke app is the one that is non standard. Every time I hear of things like this I am reminded of why the US needs to have single payer healthcare - publicly owned, publicly run healthcare system that is answerable to the people of the United States not to the shareholders as it stands at the moment.    @cyberlyra When I am only away from home for a few hours, or even for a weekend, I normally don't have any internet capable device at all. When I am at a crowded venue and need to frequently coordinate with a group, I bring cheap handheld analog radios for the group. On extended trips, I carry a 10" GPD Win Max 2 laptop running QubesOS in a leg-bag on my side so I avoid needing a backpack.  @lrvick @cyberlyra Recognition that regular mobile devices really aren't safe (briefly, they were when Blackberries used QNX). How smooth was the Qubes install on the GPD? @tasket @cyberlyra I documented it! https://gist.github.com/lrvick/ca754ddfd8d4201d9cac793fc97b3754 Qubes 4.2 should avoid these problems entirely though, but I have not tried a fresh install with it yet. @cyberlyra Also no need for a phone at home. All common areas in my home have a TV, with an attached communal mini-pc with a small keyboard-remote and a browser. No one has a good excuse to isolate themselves in a device just to fact check or research something on a phone, and end up tuning out the group by being sucked into notifications. If you want a device for something you don't want to do in front of the group, then leave the room and don't pretend to be present when you are not. @cyberlyra In general my view of phones is that they are like toilets. Most people probably don't want to watch you using one. When someone pulls out a phone at a dinner table, in my head they are just taking a shit in front of everyone. Kind of a conversation killer. I like to remove all excuses for that to happen, and be present in the real world when I am not at my desk.  Okay, thanks for the reply. Yeah, that's a weird niche, being at the intersection of ADA (effectively), the Economic/Tech Divide, and private business. It is indisputably a rights issue, & also possibly a privacy issue. I wonder if @pluralistic has seen this go by. I'll bet he'd have some pithy things to say about it. |
Gregory's Server
@lrvick Have you tried https://statesnewsroom.com/ or https://www.404media.co/about/ ?