WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.620 All right. Well, with the rise of digital 00:00:01.620 --> 00:00:05.410 mental health care has come a surge and health data 00:00:05.419 --> 00:00:09.419 . And as usual policy hasn't really caught up with 00:00:09.419 --> 00:00:11.679 practice. Well, a new report shows that this 00:00:11.679 --> 00:00:15.029 data is being brought bought and sold with few protections 00:00:15.029 --> 00:00:17.359 for individuals. So, here with more cheddar news 00:00:17.370 --> 00:00:19.940 , senior reporter Claudia Yellow. So Chloe before we 00:00:19.940 --> 00:00:22.820 dig into this report, how did Covid 19 really 00:00:22.820 --> 00:00:25.870 fuel the rise of digital health care? Hey Shannon 00:00:25.870 --> 00:00:28.140 . Well, the COVID-19 pandemic was really the perfect 00:00:28.140 --> 00:00:30.519 storm for the rise of digital mental health care. 00:00:30.530 --> 00:00:34.140 It both exacerbated mental health issues and restricted access to 00:00:34.149 --> 00:00:36.460 in person care. In just the first year of 00:00:36.460 --> 00:00:39.359 the COVID-19 pandemic, the global prevalence of anxiety and 00:00:39.359 --> 00:00:43.329 depression surged by a whopping 25% accord into the world 00:00:43.329 --> 00:00:47.020 Health Organization, restricted access to therapy and in person 00:00:47.020 --> 00:00:49.579 care. Saw a shift toward telehealth and health, 00:00:49.590 --> 00:00:52.520 which really just means the access of mental health services 00:00:52.520 --> 00:00:54.820 via a mobile phone or device. Now, a 00:00:54.820 --> 00:00:57.170 quick search on Tiktok finds tons of videos of users 00:00:57.170 --> 00:00:59.859 discussing their experiences with digital mental health care. Take 00:00:59.859 --> 00:01:02.750 a look. It's no secret that the pandemic led 00:01:02.750 --> 00:01:06.129 more people to access mental health care virtually and regulatory 00:01:06.129 --> 00:01:08.670 bodies have made it easier to prescribe medications online. 00:01:12.310 --> 00:01:17.379 Oh, a fresh pie. Save me a slice 00:01:17.670 --> 00:01:22.040 . That's good. Okay, that's good. As 00:01:22.040 --> 00:01:23.090 these Tiktok's kind of indicate the prevalence of M. 00:01:23.090 --> 00:01:27.299 Health App Downloads has really increased about 200% between 2019 00:01:27.299 --> 00:01:30.530 and 2020 Shannon. All right. So what's the 00:01:30.530 --> 00:01:33.209 problem with the user from a user data perspective. 00:01:33.219 --> 00:01:34.079 So, according to this new report from the Duke's 00:01:34.079 --> 00:01:37.590 Sanford School of Public Policy. The problem is that 00:01:37.590 --> 00:01:40.010 these apps collect the most sensitive kind of data on 00:01:40.010 --> 00:01:42.439 people's mental and physical health. And despite popular belief 00:01:42.450 --> 00:01:46.299 in most cases they aren't regulated by HipAA. Consider 00:01:46.299 --> 00:01:48.730 good Rx. The FTC just earlier this month, 00:01:48.739 --> 00:01:52.909 find the telehealth and pharmacy company.$1.5 million for 00:01:52.909 --> 00:01:56.462 sharing the private health data of customers with google facebook 00:01:56.462 --> 00:01:59.593 and other third parties without those customers consent. Now 00:01:59.593 --> 00:02:02.522 in the Duke report researcher Joanne kim contacted 37 data 00:02:02.522 --> 00:02:06.343 brokers and there are thousands in the U. S 00:02:06.483 --> 00:02:07.612 . She found that 11 were willing to sell her 00:02:07.622 --> 00:02:09.502 that data. And what did it cost? Well 00:02:09.502 --> 00:02:14.282 it cost anywhere from$275 for 5000, aggregated counts 00:02:14.282 --> 00:02:16.943 of mental health records to upwards of$100,000 a year 00:02:16.966 --> 00:02:21.045 . Year for subscription access to similar data. Now 00:02:21.045 --> 00:02:23.716 in some cases this data was anonymized. But in 00:02:23.725 --> 00:02:25.776 other cases, brokers advertised that they actually had names 00:02:25.876 --> 00:02:30.225 , postal addresses, race and ethnicity of individuals with 00:02:30.225 --> 00:02:32.936 depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety issues, panic disorders 00:02:32.936 --> 00:02:36.795 , cancer PTSD O. C. D. Personality 00:02:36.795 --> 00:02:38.626 disorders, even strokes. There also wasn't a ton 00:02:38.626 --> 00:02:40.675 of vetting as far as who could actually purchase the 00:02:40.675 --> 00:02:44.376 data. Okay then. So what do researchers hope 00:02:44.376 --> 00:02:46.889 will come of all of this? Well the hope 00:02:46.889 --> 00:02:49.150 that it will spread a little bit more awareness about 00:02:49.150 --> 00:02:52.289 these practices now, HipAA was developed in 1996 which 00:02:52.289 --> 00:02:53.780 is almost 30 years ago. It's hard to believe 00:02:53.789 --> 00:02:57.139 and technology has moved far beyond that. Now. 00:02:57.150 --> 00:02:59.060 I spoke earlier to Justin Sherman, who is a 00:02:59.060 --> 00:03:01.259 senior fellow at Duke University Sanford School of Public Policy 00:03:01.259 --> 00:03:05.210 and he runs its data broker research program. He 00:03:05.210 --> 00:03:07.840 said that he hopes the report will generate more state 00:03:07.840 --> 00:03:09.860 level and congressional attention to the need for stronger health 00:03:09.860 --> 00:03:13.814 privacy protections, the digital age. He also said 00:03:13.814 --> 00:03:15.794 it's far past time to update these laws to encompass 00:03:15.794 --> 00:03:17.875 all the ways people seek health care, not just 00:03:17.884 --> 00:03:21.514 in person visits to doctors. He emphasized that it's 00:03:21.514 --> 00:03:24.224 especially important following jobs versus Jackson Women's Health Organization, 00:03:24.235 --> 00:03:27.294 after which of course, we know many states have 00:03:27.294 --> 00:03:29.014 restricted of work should access.