ACTIVITY 4.4.5 USING DATA FROM PATIENT RECORDS The UK government has now demanded that the National Health Service stops the practice of selling patient records to insurance companies. These data were being used by insurance companies to make more accurate assessments of the risk of insuring patients. Such research information was also used to assist in the setting of insurance premiums to increase the chances of making a profit from each insurance policy. Insurance companies use other forms of market research - such as gathering data on death rates by postcodes. There are substantial differences in the average life expectancies in different regions of the UK and these data can also be used to adjust insurance premiums. 10 marks, 20 minutes Evaluate the ethical issues involved in insurance companies using research data collected from patient records. [10]