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Published: January 2011

Supreme Court health data case could sway online privacy debate

The Supreme Court has announced it will hear Sorrell v. IMS Health, a case relating to the sale of personal health data, such as prescriptions. It's a case that will affect both consumer health privacy laws and may influence the ongoing debate over online privacy.

Though many people are unaware of the practice, pharmacies routinely sell prescriber-identifiable data to data miners, who sell it to drug companies. These transactions are done without your consent.

New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine have all passed “prescription privacy” laws, banning data-mining companies from collecting information about doctors’ prescription records for drug-marketing purposes. These companies have joined forces with the pharmaceutical industry to defend their practices, arguing that the buying and selling of consumer data is constitutionally-protected by corporate "free speech," referencing the infamous Citizens United Supreme Court ruling which awarded corporations, for the first time, protection under the First Amendment.

If regulations are passed in the 112th Congress limiting practices such as online tracking and targeting, corporate free speech might end up being the go-to legal defense for online advertising and marketing companies.

For More Information

Supreme Court documents on Sorrell v. IMS Health via SCOTUSblog

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Consumer Protection   ♦   Privacy/Rights   ♦