A federal suit has been filed that challenges the legality of the federal HITECH Act. In the course of 30 often rambling pages, this complaint alleges that "HIPAA codified the Hippocratic Oath" and that HITECH improperly undermines both. This complaint appears to be the work of a gadfly or two. The plaintiff’s lawyer is her husband; interestingly, he was described by a federal judge as filing claims that were "without merit [and which] would have been perceived as such by any objectively reasonable attorney." And this same attorney has been disbarred in Connecticut.
Even if there are questions about the specific allegations in this complaint and questions about the credentials of the counsel who filed it, the complaint points to some legitimate concerns about the move to electronic medical records and health information exchange. However, it will probably be a different case that brings real scrutiny to these questions.