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THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Vice President
For Immediate Release
May 14, 1998
VICE PRESIDENT GORE ANNOUNCES NEW
COMPREHENSIVE PRIVACY ACTION PLAN
FOR THE 21ST CENTURY
Washington, DC -- Vice President Gore announced today a new
comprehensive privacy action plan from the Clinton Administration that
will give people more control over their own personal information.
We need an electronic bill of rights for this electronic age, the
Vice President said. Americans should have the right to choose
whether their personal information is disclosed; they should have the right to
know how, when, and how much of that information is being used; and
they should have the right to see it themselves, to know if it's
accurate.
Speaking at New York University's 166th Commencement, the Vice
President announced new efforts to promote privacy including: calling
for legislation to restrict how individual medical records can be used
and allow individuals to be informed about their use, and launching a
new opt-out Website where individuals can prevent personal information
from being passed on to others.
In addition, the Vice President called on the federal government
to review its own record-keeping to protect personal information from
being released. He also announced that the Administration will
convene a privacy Summit that will bring privacy and consumer advocates
together with industry officials to explore privacy on the Internet as
well as children's privacy.
Specifically:
Medical Privacy. Vice President Gore called on Congress to pass
strict medical records legislation to restrict how and when
individuals' medical records can be used; give individuals the chance to correct
those records; and give patients the right to be informed about them.
One Stop Opt-Out. The Vice President announced a new website
sponsored by the Federal Trade Commission and located at
www.consumer.gov that will enable individuals to:
- Prohibit companies from pre-screening their credit records
without their permission;
- Prevent their drivers' license data from being sold to data
miners; and
- Remove their name and address from direct-mailing and
telemarketing lists.
Ensure Appropriate Use of Federal Government Data. The Vice
President announced that the President has signed a new Presidential
Memorandum to agency heads, effective today, that: 1) requires
agencies to ensure that new technologies do not erode Privacy Act
protections while also examining how new technologies can be used to
enhance personal privacy, 2) calls for a thorough agency-by-agency
review of existing privacy practices, and 3) directs the Office of
Management and Budget to conduct a review and issue guidance on the
way agencies can protect privacy information, especially when they
collaborate with state and local governments.
Privacy Summit. To fully understand and address the complex
issues involved with privacy in the Information Age, the Vice President
called on the Commerce Department to convene a Summit on Privacy within the
next month to bring privacy and consumer advocates together with
industry officials to explore the feasibility and limitations of the
application of self regulation to the Internet and to focus on
children's privacy.
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