Vendors that sell wellness programs to large employers are often required by law to comply with HIPAA privacy guidelines through a Business Associate Agreement. This agreement protects employee privacy and ensures their health data will be kept confidential, similar to other online health services. However, wellness programs marketed directly to consumers may not offer the same formal legal protections for privacy.

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DO WELLNESS PROGRAMS
PROTECT EMPLOYEE PRIVACY?

2. Yes, Employee Privacy Can Be Protected
• Vendors that sell wellness programs to large U.S. employers are
often under a formal HIPAA contract called a Business Associate
Agreement. This agreement says that the vendor of the wellness
solution will comply with HIPAA guidelines and law. This is common
enough that most corporate wellness vendors are fairly
sophisticated in their awareness of privacy and data protection. In
these cases employees can be fairly confident that they will have the
same protections as other online health products. Programs that are
primarily marketed to consumers don’t fall under this formal
relationship and might not offer the same level of protection.
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Prepared by:
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