Dawn of Digital Health Care: Risks & Strategies for Liability, Coverage, PropertyCasualty 360, article by Laura Ruettgers, Christopher Tellner, Abbye Alexander & Henry Norwood, November 10, 2021

As health care continues moving in the direction of using digital information, health care organizations must evolve their practices to uphold their responsibilities to their patients and ensure compliance with laws and regulations. For the benefits of digitized health services to be realized, companies need to ensure the safety of their patients’ data. Newer health technologies will result in more information being accumulated by organizations, requiring more trust by patients.

Big data and the Internet of Things have expanded the extent to which health information is collected. Wearable technology, such as watches, bracelets, rings and phone applications, can detect a wearer’s heart rate, activity, location, blood pressure, oxygen levels, fertility and other statistics. Constant monitoring of vital statistics gives health providers a more detailed picture of their patients’ health, but also results in larger quantities of patient data in the hands of health care organizations.

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) is expanding the rate at which health care organizations are able to access health information in furtherance of providing care. AI in health care could greatly improve patient outcomes and efficiency of care, but it is entirely reliant on the availability of health data in rendering predictive models.

Telehealth, the provision of health care via electronic information and telecommunication technologies, has become more prevalent in recent years. Telehealth relies on the transmission of health information digitally, either through a webcam or uploads to a cloud space or server used by the organization, requiring a level of trust on the part of the patient that the organization will maintain the privacy and security of that information.

Because health information is predominantly stored in electronic form, it can be compromised by cybercriminals. The increased sharing of health information leads to a larger threat that the shared data will be compromised through a cyberattack. A brief overview of the legal landscape regulating health information technology can aid health organizations plan for the responsible use and storage of health information. Please read full article at the link below 

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