Health Law Daily Wrap Up, HEALTH CARE REFORM NEWS: Fitness Apps Would Face New Privacy Rules Under Cassidy Bill, (Nov 5, 2025)

By Tom Leithauser

Sen. Bill Cassidy has introduced a bill to protect Americans’ private health data from newer technology.

Users of smartwatches, fitness apps, and similar health-monitoring technologies would have to be told how their health data might be used and given a chance to opt out of its collection under legislation introduced yesterday by Sen. Bill Cassidy (R., La.), chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.

The Health Information Privacy Reform Act (S.B. 3097, 119th Cong. (2025)) is an attempt to update the privacy and cybersecurity provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) to account for the popularity of wearables and other modern technologies, Sen. Cassidy explained in a news release.

Under the bill, providers of “digital technology that generates wellness data about individuals” would have to inform customers that their data is not covered by HIPAA’s privacy protections and “offer the individual an opportunity to opt out of such wellness data generation,” according to its text.

It defines “wellness data” as “data generated for the purpose of promoting health or preventing disease, which may include vital statistics, step counts, and medical regimen compliance.”

The bill would direct the Department of Health and Human Services and Federal Trade Commission to craft regulations to implement its provisions.

HIPAA governs “traditional provider-patient interactions,” Sen. Cassidy noted. “However, HIPAA is failing to keep up with consumer health products that connect individuals to health tools outside of the doctor’s office.”

“This legislation protects Americans’ private health data by expanding health privacy protections to account for new technologies that are not currently required to have privacy protections, such as smartwatches and health apps,” he said.

“Smartwatches and health apps change the way people manage their health. They’re helpful tools, but present new privacy concerns that didn’t exist when it was just a patient and a doctor in an exam room,” Sen. Cassidy added. “Let’s make sure that Americans’ data is secured and only collected and used with their consent.” —Tom Leithauser, tom.leithauser@wolterskluwer.com

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