Co-Regulation of Online Consumer Personal Health Records: Breaking through the Privacy Logjam to Increase the Adoption of a Long-Overdue Technology · University of Wisconsin Law School Digital Repository · University of Wisconsin Law School Digital Repository

Co-Regulation of Online Consumer Personal Health Records: Breaking through the Privacy Logjam to Increase the Adoption of a Long-Overdue Technology

A dramatic increase in the use of online consumer personal health records is likely since Microsoft and Google are working to market fledgling products, and state governments encourage their use. While consumers are interested in utilizing these valuable tools, overwhelming information-security and privacy concerns have consistently prevented widespread adoption. This Comment encourages the development of a coregulatory scheme with a government-enforced privacy framework that may overcome the privacy logjam impeding the adoption of online consumer personal health records. Utilizing industry standards in establishing a regulatory framework will provide an environment that encourages selfregulation and continues the market driven push to develop advancements in information security. The Federal Trade Commission's experience and current strategies in privacy protection of online consumers best equips this agency to enforce the proposed regulatory framework. The enforcement structure suggested by this Comment will assuage consumer concerns by ensuring baseline security and privacy policies.