Neural Interfaces and Privacy Law: In Search of a Mind Meld
Alyson Tseng Neural interfaces are electronic devices that are placed on the brain and other parts of the neural system and can collect biometric and neurometric data. Rapid developments and commercialization of neural interfaces in the non-medical realm raise concernsregarding data privacy. The major privacy risks created by neural interfaces demonstrate the need for a sufficient regulatory framework that can adequately govern new technologies. Current laws are insufficient to regulate neural interfaces. This Essay proposes changes that a United States data protection law could adopt. It also encourages companies to consider digital ethics in the design of new technologies. Read...
The Case for the Use of Facial Recognition Technology
Ye-Eun Sung Consumers often unknowingly enter brick-and-mortar stores that utilize facial recognition technology. Many are, therefore, at risk of their biometric data being wrongfully used without their consent or knowledge. The delay in the courts’ and the federal government’s response to facial recognition technology has allowed its development and use to remain unregulated. Although regulation of this technology is essential, its use should not be banned outright. Due to the changing retail landscape, facial recognition technology provides brick-and-mortar stores with information that allows them to remain relevant in a market that relies significantly on the internet and e-commerce. Read Full...
Protect Your Own Data: Interactive Streaming Narratives and Data Privacy Concerns
Sabra Paige Hopkins Black Mirror: Bandersnatch exemplifies the value of data gathered from interactive streaming narratives. Netflix can utilize its wealth of subscriber data to push targeted product placements to subscribers based on their demographic data. Data on subscriber choices could also be used to increase the accuracy of Netflix’s recommendation algorithm. In the wake of data privacy regulations, companies must justify their data collection and processing practices. Read Full Text Here
The Patent Utility Requirement and Its Impact on Alternative Medical Treatments for Lyme Disease
Sarah Murphy Alternative medicine has made its way to the forefront of medical innovation, changing the way both doctors and patients approach complex health issues. Patenting medical inventions promotes advancement by increasing the exchange of vital information. This crucial benefit to society is particularly important for patients suffering from chronic illnesses who are dissatisfied with conventional medicine. Though the patent system requires that patented inventions are “useful,” there is no guarantee that the product is effective or even safe to use. The medical field must grapple with this trade-off between the benefit of new treatments made easily available to people...
FTC Social Media Endorsement Guidelines: The Effects on Social Media Users and Business Owners
Jason Kim In the midst of heydays of social media, a social media user will inevitably face a product or service endorsement post in his/her social media feed or thread page. However, in the endorsement post, it is quite rare to see disclosure information as to whether the social media endorser has some kind of commercial relationship with the product manufacturer or service provider. On September 7, 2017 the FTC issued its first ever legal action against individual social media endorsers for posting endorsement posts without revealing their commercial relationship with the service providing company. This action by the FTC...
Data Exclusivity for Biologic Drugs: The TPP’s Potential Poison Pill?
Tina Cheung On October 5, 2015, after many years of secretive negotiations, the US government with 11 other countries across the Asia Pacific and Latin America reached an agreement on the largest free-trade deal in history, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Addressing everything from wildlife conservation and tax reductions for agriculture, to the free flow of information on the Internet and intellectual-property rights for movies and pharmaceutical drugs, this far-reaching agreement has the potential to impact up to one-third of world trade. One of the most contentious parts of the agreement involves intellectual property rights of pharma companies to data exclusivity...
Telemedicine & the Courts: Teladoc v. Texas Medical Board as a Case Study
Mary Delsener Today, health insurance companies such as Aetna and United Healthcare have partnered with telemedicine companies in order to provide the service for its members. Teladoc, Inc., which markets itself as the first and largest telehealth provider in the United States, is one such company. Of all of business generated by Teladoc’s 11.5 million members, one quarter comes from Texas. Over the course of the past year, however, Teladoc’s ability to continue its services in the state has been on legally tenuous ground due to repeated steps taken by the Texas Medical Board to oust the company from its...
Telemedicine’s Opportunities and Risks; A Balancing Act
Robert Park Obstacles that can complicate successful implementation of telemedicine are the legal ramifications. Legal complications can include fraud and abuse, patient confidentiality, and compliance with state requirements. Violation of patient care can result in heavy fines, and in telemedicine, a recent case involving the Texas Medical Board and a Telemedicine company could heat up within the coming months. Because of these obstacles, healthcare organizations face an arduous journey to getting reimbursed for implementing telemedicine. Read Full Text Here
The Daraprim and the Pharmaceutical Pricing Paradox: A Broken System?
Franklin Liu In a recent study by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), the average prices for brand-name prescription drugs were found to have increased by an average of 13 percent in 2013, compared to the inflation rate the year of just 1.5 percent. The Daraprim and Cycloserine cases, while extreme illustrations, depict a broader trend of increasing U.S. drug and health care costs to patients. The two manufacturers’ pricing decisions illustrate a longstanding tension in the pharmaceutical industry between the need for firms to recoup the high costs associated with bringing drugs to market and keeping drugs affordable...
Defenseless in the Zombie Infested Internet: Why Audio-Visual Works Demand Exemption Under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act
Eric Maher In the aftermath of Napster and Pirate Bay’s shameless disregard for copyrights, DRM strategies are necessary to protect the incentives that encourage artists and programmers to create and publicly display their works. Yet the security risks associated with DRM levy a high cost on the public, on whose patronage the content creators depend. By restricting research and investigation into security risks in popular public technologies, U.S. copyright law, particularly under the anti-circumvention provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”), removed necessary safeguards for the public. The large influx of new consumer electronics demands exemption from the anti-circumvention...