As
we reported in May 2014, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
convened stakeholders to explore whether health-related information
collected from and about consumers — known as
consumer-generated health information (CHI) — through use of
the internet and increasingly-popular lifestyle and fitness mobile
apps is more sensitive and in need of more privacy-sensitive
treatment than other consumer-generated data.
One of the key questions raised during the FTC's CHI seminar
is: "what is consumer health information"?
Information gathered during traditional medical encounters is
clearly health-related. Information gathered from mobile apps
designed as sophisticated diagnostic tools also is clearly
health-related — and may even be "Protected Health
Information," as defined and regulated by Health Information
Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), depending on the
interplay of the app and the health care provider or payor
community. But, other information, such as
