US top court won't review prescription privacy law

WASHINGTON, June 29 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court declined on Monday to hear an appeal by two publishers of health care information arguing that data mining for commercial purposes is protected by free-speech rights.

The high court refused to decide a challenge by IMS Health Inc RX.N and Verispan, a unit of SDI Health LLC, to a New Hampshire law that makes it a crime to use information about a doctor's prescribing history for the purpose of increasing drug sales. (Reporting by James Vicini, Editing by Gerald E. McCormick)