Connected Healthcare: Addressing Minors’ Access and Their Privacy Rights

Background

The universe of data-driven digital health tools that operate outside the bounds of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) continues to expand. The privacy practices of these digital health tools fall under the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act, which lawmakers seem to agree should be updated with a cross-sector privacy framework. But for services directed to children, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) requires them to obtain “verified parental consent” before collecting or sharing the child’s data. In yet another layer of complexity, state laws pertaining to HIPAA covered entities and business associates differ in their treatment of adolescent patient data, especially as it relates to their parents’ involvement in the management of their protected health information. This confluence of legal regimes requires traditional healthcare providers and digital health companies to navigate compliance ambiguities, including by turning to tech-driven identity management tools that enable providers to balance privacy for children and adolescents with the role of parents and guardians.

The sensitivity of children’s data and healthcare data from consumers of any age also adds to the urgency of efforts to update privacy laws to better equip enforcers and regulators to address the heightened risks of collecting and processing it. This webinar will capture and discuss the high-level use cases, current and evolving legal and regulatory bounds, and key challenges in the remote identity management and privacy protection of minors in connected healthcare contexts.

Topics covered:

• Unique challenges with apps, wearables, and remote monitoring of children
• How identity management tools help authenticate access to patient records
• Adolescent consent to parent and authorized representative access
• The legislative outlook and how proposals could impact child privacy
  
  

Participants: