Imagine walking into a doctor's office, not clutching a manila folder stuffed with paper records, but holding the key to your complete health history within your smartphone. Every doctor's visit, lab test, even your fitness tracker data, woven into a digital tapestry. Sounds too good to be true, right? Yet, this vast trove of personal health information already exists, scattered across a network of hospitals, insurers, research institutions, and even fitness apps.
This proliferation of personal data creates a vulnerability. We've unknowingly handed over the keys to our most sensitive information, often without realizing it. Data brokers and intermediaries are quietly collecting and aggregating this data, piecing together an intricate picture of our lives – from childhood illnesses to recent workouts. All of this is occurring while more and more companies experience costly security breaches, with tens of millions of Americans impacted by healthcare data breaches in 2023 – and malicious actors ready to take advantage.
Consider companies exploiting health data for targeted advertising, insurance firms using it to discriminate, or even foreign actors wielding genetic information for blackmail or espionage. These scenarios, once relegated to dystopian fiction, are increasingly plausible in today's data-driven world.
Because of this exploitation, modern healthcare relies on trusted digital identities more than ever, whether it is for a patient accessing protected health information or a physician needing to prescribe a controlled substance. Healthcare organizations use identity proofing to ensure patients and providers securely access healthcare data. It also protects patients and providers from medical identity theft and prescription fraud.
The Biden administration just announced an executive order to protect sensitive personal data, like health data, from reaching the hands of foreign adversaries. It highlights how much of this data is obtained through legal means, such as data brokers and third-party agreements. While the administration's proposed executive order to protect sensitive data is a step in the right direction, true empowerment lies in solutions that put individuals at the center.
Individuals deserve to be able to securely access, manage, and share their health records across all providers, on their own terms in a portable digital wallet. No more navigating complex medical jargon or chasing down disparate portals. Imagine the ripple effect if such user-friendly platforms became the norm, and the confidence of walking into a doctor's appointment armed with your complete medical history, easily accessible through a user-friendly platform.
By leveraging secure and portable digital wallets, patients are able to retrieve and share their complete medical records across all providers in one location. Wider adoption of this patient-centered healthcare model could fundamentally shift the power dynamic, placing individuals in control of their health journey through streamlined access and data ownership.
Data privacy isn't a future concern; it's a present necessity. Taking back control of your health data isn't just about protecting yourself; it's about reclaiming your agency and shaping a future where your health information empowers you, not exploits you.
Supporting initiatives that protect sensitive data, demanding comprehensive data privacy laws, and exploring innovative solutions that divest control from data brokers are all crucial steps. Let's move away from a paradigm where individuals passively hand over their information to a decentralized system. Instead, let's build a healthcare ecosystem where individuals hold the key to their own well-being, empowered by the knowledge and ownership of their health data. Take back control of your data, and in turn, take back control of your health.
Jason Barr has held several leadership positions in healthcare technology organizations, including serving as Head of Sales & Growth at Flatiron Health and as Chief Revenue Officer at Healthy Roster, Inc. He is also a U.S. Army Veteran and served two combat tours in Iraq. Jason is currently the VP, Healthcare, at ID.me, the market-leading digital identity and credentials network.
