Technology and health-care companies are competing to develop new ways for consumers to corral their digital health data, prompting questions about data privacy and control. Companies such as Apple Inc. and UnitedHealth Group Inc. are rolling out online tools that consumers can use to bring together health information now siloed in the systems of hospitals, doctors and insurers. These personal health records aim to consolidate information like diagnoses and lab results for consumers to access easily via their smartphones or...
The rise in health care and technology companies developing apps for US consumers has fuelled privacy concerns. Apple, Cigna, UnitedHealth and other firms have created online tools for users to gather their personal health data, which is currently stored across a variety of medical and insurance systems. In the UK, there are plans by NHS England to introduce an app that will allow patients to access data from all healthcare providers including GPs, dentists, physiotherapists and radiologists.