Wearable Devices and Human Resources

By Gary Anderberg, PhD

SVP Claim Analytics
Gallagher Bassett

Many employers are now requiring use of wearable devices to monitor how employees work,  whether they are lifting properly or following other safe practices in warehouse or manufacturing environments.

“Wearables” are clothing or accessories that include electronic devices and interfaces to monitor your vital signs, activities, and/or location. Most of us have and use wearables right now. An Apple watch or Fitbit is a good example of a basic wearable device, as is the global positioning system (GPS) location function in your smartphone. Wearables are taking on a number of additional business-related functions.

But what about the data these devices collect? Is this a new form of protected health information (PHI) under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)? Is it legally protected information? If so, how should it be handled and protected? This is a gray area for many organizations. For some, HIPAA is a compliance responsibility of human resources (HR) and its vendor partners; everyone else is hands-off.

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