Federal agencies release updated privacy guide for health app developers

An updated “trail guide” has been published by a number of federal authorities to assist developers who are working on health apps in determining which privacy restrictions are applicable to their products. The Mobile Health Apps Tool was developed by the Federal Trade Commission in conjunction with the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Office for Civil Rights under the Department of Health and Human Services.

It helps app creators in the mobile health tech industry figure out whether federal rules apply to their products and which agencies control various areas of data collection, sharing, use, and storage in the mobile health tech industry. These statutes are included:

• The HIPAA privacy, security, and breach notification regulations.
• The Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of the United States (FD&C Act).
• Health information technology (IT) and information blocking provisions of the 21st Century Cures Act and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT’s (ONC’s) Cures Act Final Rule (including the ONC Health IT Certification Program).
• The Health Information Breach Notification Act of 2013 and the Federal Trade Commission Act.
• Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).

“The incorporation of information privacy and security safeguards from the outset of mobile technology development ensures that these features are integral to the product’s architecture and business processes from the start (sometimes referred to as privacy or security by design). That way, people know their data is safe and will be utilized and shared only as intended.”

Source: Mobihealthnews