Privacy is great if you want it, but can be pretty inconvenient when you don't. Seems like we should be able to "opt out" of privacy at our own discretion.
For example, if you fill out a detailed medical history listing every condition in your family, from maternal and fraternal grandparents on down, including every allergy, surgery, and medication you've ever had, then you have compiled a very important and useful compendium of information that could help all of your doctors deliver optimal care. But if privacy policies dictate that the only person who can see your information is the one who requested it, then you may have just wasted a lot of time. Especially if you completed the exercise for an ophthalmologist during a routine exam.
From a technology standpoint, such information is very sharable in electronic form. However, from a legal standpoint, healthcare institutions are required to "protect their patients' information" in accordance with state and federal regulations. The state regulations in California are extreme, by the way.
Seems a little odd to me that individuals have no say in whether or not they want privacy. It has become a mandate, at all times, at the highest levels, even when it is neither important nor convenient to maintain.
