CDC tracked millions of phones to see if Americans followed lockdown orders

Post by listless » Mon, May 09, 2022, 1:53 PM UTC

standardUser wrote: post #326

listless wrote: post #284

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The CDC unilaterally ruled this country for the better part of 2 years. No checks. No balances. Now you could argue that the desperation of the situation calls for something more expedient than Democracy. But many people who supported the moves made by the CDC (including me) were equally horrified that it had as much power to do so.

That is so wildly off the mark it is preposterous. State and local officials were almost entirely responsible for the actual implementation of pandemic response measures. And when various cities and states got tired of the pandemic (despite record deaths) they simply ignored the CDC.

"This is so wildly off the mark"...

The CDC unliterally...

* Outlawed all evictions * Mandated masks on airplanes and public transportation * Banned migrants at the border * Grounded the entire cruise industry

And it's not that those things shouldn't be done. It's that they were done by a body with no checks and balances. None - whatsoever. There should not be a body in our government that can just make laws undemocratically. Or should there? This should be a cause of concern for everyone.

Post by modriano » Sat, May 14, 2022, 11:31 PM UTC

chaps wrote: post #140

jonathankoren wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes. Location data is health data. It has been since 1854. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1854_Broad_Street_cholera_outb...

Just because data is used in understanding something related to health doesn't mean that it's "health data" in a legal, protected, or regulatory sense. Nor does it mean that they should have de facto access to the data without limitations. Hell, the closest thing I'm aware of that's close to it (at least under HIPAA) is the name or address of a hospital that a person's visited. Would you be okay if the CDC purchased…

Can you provide a link the statute or other ratified text that you're basing your "health data" categorization on?

By the way, HIPAA privacy rules regulate the use and disclosure of Protected Health Information (PHI) in healthcare treatment, payment and operations by covered entities.

Per this CDC FAQ [0]: """ What information is protected? All medical records and other individually identifiable health information used or disclosed by a covered entity in any form, whether electronically, on paper, or orally, are covered by the final rule.

For what disclosures and uses must consent be obtained by a provider? The Privacy Rule states that: In general, “[a] covered health care provider [with a direct treatment relationship] must obtain the individual’s consent,…prior to using or disclosing protected health information to carry out treatment, payment, or health care operations.” (See section [§] 164.506, 65 Federal Register [F.R.] p. 82810, for complete requirements.) """

Non-covered entities, like commercial data brokers, are free to sell PHI-containing data (assuming they aren't contractually prevented from doing so), and unless the data said broker sells is from a covered entity, no plausible interpretation bars the CDC from buying data available to anyone.

> Would you be okay if the CDC purchased data from period-tracking apps to track periods? Or how many bottles of soap I purchase in a year? Or how much booze everyone buys?

Legally? Yes, unambiguously. Morally? Depends on what they're do with their analysis. If it's for disease control and/or harm prevention, that seems to fall squarely within their scope.

[0] https://www.cdc.gov/nhsn/hipaa/index.html

Re: CDC tracked millions of phones to see if Americans followed lockdown orders

Re: CDC tracked millions of phones to see if Americans followed lockdown orders