On August 16, 2016, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) approved the final order resolving its privacy complaints against Practice Fusion. The complaint [view related post] alleged that Practice Fusion “misled consumers by soliciting reviews for doctors in connection with an online healthcare satisfaction survey, without disclosing adequately that these reviews would be publicly posted on the Internet.” The FTC further alleged that patients’ sensitive personal and medical information was publicly disclosed, which violated the FTC Act.
The order requires Practice Fusion to obtain consumers’ explicit consent before making any consumers’ information publicly available, and to refrain from making deceptive statements about how it protects the privacy or confidentiality of consumers’ information.