The Bill of Rights Vs. Patient's Bill of Rights

People sometimes mix up the Patient's Bill of Rights that is debated today and the original Bill of Rights that was added to the U.S. Constitution over 200 years ago. There are some pretty clear differences.

The Bill of Rights

• The Bill of Rights is the name of the first 10 amendments to the Constitution. They went into effect on Dec. 15, 1791. They outline specific rights of citizens that the public felt were left out of the Constitution itself. In particular Thomas Jefferson was a strong proponent of the Bill of Rights. Some delegates were worried that by listing these rights it could be argued that they are the only ones afforded to citizens.

Patients' Bill of Rights

• The Patients' Bill of Rights (officially known as the Bipartisan Patient Protection Act) lists the rights U.S. patients can expect. It was developed because of growing concern over the costs and complications in the American health care system. The bill was introduced in 2001 by John McCain and co-authored by Ted Kennedy and John Edwards. It was approved by the Senate in a roll call vote but was not voted on in the House. When the 107th Congressional Session ended in 2003, the bill was cleared from the agenda and was never reintroduced.

  Though there isn't a patients' bill of rights at the federal level, they have been established at the state level in locations such as New York, Minnesota and Michigan. Some general themes in most patients' bills of rights are access to emergency care, freedom from discrimination and confidentiality of medical information.

Similarities

• There was fierce debate when the original Bill of Rights was ratified and the same is true today over the legitimacy of the Patients' Bill of Rights. Back in the 1790s opponents felt that it should be up to the states to enumerate the rights of its citizens. Today, the states determine the rights of the patient, which can vary widely.

Differences

• Unlike the original Bill of Rights, the federal U.S. Patients' Bill of Rights is not law. The various state patients' bills of rights are law but are only binding within state borders. Both documents accord rights to a group of people, though the Patients' Bill of Rights addresses a more specific group.

Warning

• The term "Patients' Bill of Rights" can refer to many things. The "U.S. Patients' Bill of Right" is the informal name for this piece of legislation. It is not a law. Some states have their own patients' bills of rights that are state law.