In the Headlines
August 30, 2024
Lawyer: Court Decision Over Website Trackers Has ‘Zero Impact on Patient Privacy’
Health Exec
Data Strategy, Security and Privacy attorney Paul Bond was quoted in a Health Exec article about a recent federal court decision that overturned a ban on third-party tracking cookies on hospital websites. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) initially argued that these trackers may violate portions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) but ultimately decided not to appeal the court's ruling. Mr. Bond agreed with the judge's decision and plaintiffs' reasoning that searching for information on a website cannot be held to the same standard as speaking to a provider.
"[Hospital websites] are used by employees and applicants, by friends and family of patients, by researchers and students, and the general public. HHS's inference that all website visitors were seeking care was, as it turns out, literally indefensible," he said.
READ: Lawyer: Court Decision Over Website Trackers Has ‘Zero Impact on Patient Privacy’
"[Hospital websites] are used by employees and applicants, by friends and family of patients, by researchers and students, and the general public. HHS's inference that all website visitors were seeking care was, as it turns out, literally indefensible," he said.
READ: Lawyer: Court Decision Over Website Trackers Has ‘Zero Impact on Patient Privacy’