Austin Medical Times June 2020

Page 1

June Edition 2020

Inside This Issue

Anxiety Surrounding The Return To Normalcy See pg. 10

INDEX Mental Health...................... pg.3 Oncology Research......... pg.6 Healthy Heart....................... pg.9

Travel Safely See pg. 12

Reopening the Economy And Getting Back To Business: Privacy Concerns with Health Data Collection and Contact Tracing

By Frank T. Spano, JD Kathy A. Hardee, JD Polsinelli, PC

M

any of the reopening guidelines require businesses to screen individuals who have COVID-19 and communicate such data to public health authorities for the purpose of contact tracing. In their screening efforts prompted by these guidelines, many businesses will take the temperatures of employees, customers and visitors, or start tracking attributes of “wellness� such as who reports in sick. As time goes on, technology will play a greater role. Facial recognition and other biometric technologies may offer solutions for identifying individuals who have tested positive or need to be quarantined based on contact tracing more broadly. The increasing use of biometric and geolocation technologies was raising privacy concerns

before COVID-19. Presently, there are a number of laws that address private sector usage

these initiatives is the balancing of concerns for the safety and privacy for personal data on the one hand, and the critically important public health need for screening and contact tracing on the other. Practical Tips for Businesses Requirements for COVID-19 screening and contact tracing are rapidly evolving, and will undoubtedly vary from place to place depending on the overlay of federal, state and local laws, regulations and executive orders. Nevertheless, there are a few basic privacy principles that will help companies implement effective screening and contact tracing and minimize exposure to potential liability. 1. Privacy Notice. Companies should ensure that they provide clear notice to individuals (including employees) describing the personal data that will be collected, the means used to collect it, and how the data will be used, shared

By implementing t hese basic pr ivacy pr inciples businesses may accomplish effective screening and contact tracing while minimizing exposure to potential liability.... of facial recognition or biometric data. These laws may soon be modified or in some cases preempted by legislation that is specific to the COVID-19 pandemic. Although it is too early to predict the contents of any legislation, it is fair to assume it will provide individuals with some measure of control over how their personal health, geolocation and proximity data are being collected and used to combat the pandemic. The common thread in all of

see Economy... page 14

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Austin Medical Times June 2020 by Rick Delarosa - Issuu