FTC fines drug discount app for sharing user information to Facebook and Google

The Federal Trade Commission has slapped prescription drug discount app GoodRx with a $1.5 million fine for the unauthorized disclosure of customers’ identifiable health information with third parties, such as Facebook and Google. This is the first time the agency has taken enforcement action under its Health Breach Notification Rule, which requires vendors of personal health records to notify customers if their data has been breached. While the rule has applied to companies handling health records since 2009, FTC commissioners voted in favor of expanding it to cover health apps in 2021. 

According to the FTC, the California-based telehealth service repeatedly violated the rule by sharing customers’ personal health information, including their health conditions and the medicine they’re taking. Further, it shared their information with companies that have third-party advertising platforms like Facebook, Google and Criteo despite making a promise to customers that it will never do so. The FTC says GoodRx also monetized its customers’ information. In 2019, for instance, it uploaded the email addresses, phone numbers and mobile advertising IDs of users who purchased certain medications to Facebook, so it can target them with health-related ads. 

In addition to imposing a $1.5 million fine on GoodRx, the FTC is also seeking to change how the company handles user information. In its proposed court order (PDF) against the company, it listed several provisions, including banning the service from disclosing user data for advertising purposes. For other purposes, it wants to require GoodRx to secure customers’ consent first before sharing their health information to third parties. The FTC also wants GoodRx to get the third parties it shared data with to delete its customers’ information, and it wants the company to establish a comprehensive privacy program that will protect user data. 

Samuel Levine, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in statement:

“Digital health companies and mobile apps should not cash in on consumers’ extremely sensitive and personally identifiable health information. The FTC is serving notice that it will use all of its legal authority to protect American consumers’ sensitive data from misuse and illegal exploitation.”

FTC asks court to hold Martin Shkreli in contempt for launching new drug company

Martin Shkreli, whom you may know as “Pharma Bro,” launched a new company last year called “Druglike, Inc.” Now, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has asked a federal judge to hold him in contempt for failing to cooperate with the agency in its investigation to determine whether launching the company violates his lifetime industry ban. US District Court Judge Denise Cote imposed a lifetime ban on Shkreli that prohibits him from participating in the pharmaceutical industry early last year. Cote ruled that the former pharma exec orchestrated an illegal anticompetitive scheme to gain a monopoly over Daraprim, a life-saving anti-malarial and anti-parasitic drug. 

After Shkreli’s former company, Turing Pharmaceuticals, obtained the manufacturing license for Daraprim, it raised the drug’s prices from $17.50 to $750 per tablet. Cote sided with the FTC in the antitrust lawsuit the agency filed against Shkreli in 2020 and ordered him to pay $64.6 million in damages, in addition to imposing a lifetime industry ban against him. Prior to Druglike’s launch, Shkreli tried (and failed) to convince a judge to put the ban on hold, arguing that the public could benefit from his future contributions to the industry. Shkreli challenged the ban while he was serving time in federal prison after receiving a seven-year sentence in 2017 for defrauding investors. He was released from prison in May.

The FTC said it started asking Shkreli for a compliance report and access to relevant records, as well as asking him to sit for an interview regarding Druglike, in October 2022. However, the company co-founder kept on disregarding its “repeated requests.” The agency also said that Shkreli has yet to pay any amount of his $64.6 million fine. It’s now asking the court to order Shkreli to comply with its information requests within 21 days of its decision. 

In a press release (PDF) for its launch, Druglike described itself as “a Web3 drug discovery software platform.” The company said it’s building a “decentralized computing network” that “provides resources for anyone looking to start or contribute to early-stage drug discovery projects.” In a statement, Shkreli said “Druglike will remove barriers to early-stage drug discovery, increase innovation and allow a broader group of contributors to share the rewards.”

Meta Quest now syncs workouts with Android phones and pairs with heart-rate trackers

In a 2022 report about VR fitness, The Washington Post cited a Forrester research that said 25 percent of American adults online are interested in buying a VR headset and 18 percent think they’d primarily use it for exercise. VR fitness is a growing sp…

There was a lot of pee on the CES 2023 show floor

One swallow doesn’t make a summer, and I’m not sure if you can count four instances of a product as a trend, but it’s certainly an interesting thread at this year’s CES. At this year’s show, a quartet of companies are showing off urine analysis tools d…

Withings’ $500 toilet computer wants to be WebMD for your pee

Withings has already made a name for itself as a maker of smart scales and ultra-stylish activity trackers. Now, the French health-tech company is making a foray into the world of medical analysis, building a device to scan people’s urine. It’s initially intended as a way of supporting decentralized clinical trials, the company hopes to offer it as a consumer health-tech device in the future. Say hello to U-Scan.

U-Scan is a pebble-shaped device that hangs from a plastic tab on the side of your toilet bowl, much like a deodorizer block. The hardware, 90mm in diameter, is intended to sit on the porcelain where most people’s pee streams would land. There’s a collection inlet at the lowest point, and a sensor will detect the presence of urine and trigger a pump you pull a small quantity into its body. From there, the sample is pumped into a microfluidic system which triggers a chemical reaction.

Image of the microfluidic cartridge found inside Withings' U-Scan
Daniel Cooper

(This microfluidic system is a little like the litmus test-esque strips you’ll have seen a doctor use when testing your pee. As you can see from the picture, these are far smaller, but the reaction changes the color of the paper, which is then read by the device’s scanner. This should, for instance, be able to make binary conclusions about substances present in your waste.)

Sitting underneath the U-Scan itself will be a cartridge, which contains the specific test that you’re looking for. The company has, so far, partnered with two medical centers in Europe to explore ways of discovering renal lithiasis and bladder cancer. It’s hoped that the system will eventually be used to mass-screen for cancer markers and support medical studies.

In terms of the consumer units, the company has developed U-Scan Cycle Sync, designed to be used for period tracking. The idea is to provide detailed, regular testing to enable fine-grain cycle tracking without the need for calendar apps. As well as predicting your menstrual cycle, the system says it’ll predict your ovulation window, hydration levels and nutrient levels.

Image of a NutriBalance cartridge inside Withings' new U-Scan.
Daniel Cooper

The other is U-Scan Nutri Balance, which offers a “detailed metabolic guide to hydration and nutrition.” This will look at your water balance, nutrient levels, fat metabolism and quantities of vitamin C found in your pee. Most crucially, you’ll be able to monitor your ketone levels, as well as the pH of your urine, good for determining if you’re eating a healthy enough diet.

When processed, the results of the tests are shared to a server over WiFi or Bluetooth, and then the cartridge will reset with a fresh test pod. The company says that U-Scan is sufficiently smart to distinguish different users, such as various family members in a home, and separate tests accordingly.

Image of Withings U Scan
Daniel Cooper

Withings has also said that its system conforms to the highest security standards, and that its data will always be held in France, in a GDPR-compliant setup. It says that U-Scan will run for three months before needing a recharge (over USB-C) and a replacement cartridge.

In terms of pricing, and availability, you’ll expect that whatever date Withings says, it may be delayed due to regulatory approvals. The company says that U-Scan will be first made available in Europe at some point in Q2, 2023, with the Nutri Balance and Cycle Sync cartridges. A starter kit, with one reader and cartridge, will be priced at €499.95 ($530), while replacement cartridges are expected to cost €30 ($31). A US release will take place at some point afterward, whenever the FDA decides to clear the product for consumer use.

Researchers develop blood test that can reliably detect Alzheimer’s disease

When doctors need to confirm an Alzheimer’s diagnosis, they often turn to a combination of brain imaging and cell analysis. Both have their downsides. The latter involves a lumbar puncture, an invasive and painful procedure that’s more commonly known as a spinal tap. A doctor will insert a needle into the lower back to extract a sample of the patient’s cerebrospinal fluid. A lab technician then tests the sample for signs of progressive nerve cell loss and excessive amyloid and tau protein accumulation. MRI scans are less invasive but they’re often expensive and accessibility is an issue; not every community has access to the technology.

The next best tool for diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease is a blood test. While some can detect abnormal tau protein counts, they’re less effective at spotting the telltale signs of neurodegeneration. But that could soon change. This week, in the journal Brain, a multinational team made up of researchers from Sweden, Italy, the UK and US detailed a new antibody-based blood test they recently developed. The new test can detect brain-derived tau proteins, which are specific to Alzheimer’s disease. Following a study of 600 patients, the team found their test could reliably distinguish the illness from other neurodegenerative diseases.

Dr. Thomas Karikari, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh and one of the co-authors of the study, told The Guardian he hopes the breakthrough could help other researchers design better clinical trials for Alzheimer’s treatments. “A blood test is cheaper, safer and easier to administer, and it can improve clinical confidence in diagnosing Alzheimer’s and selecting participants for clinical trial and disease monitoring,” he said. There’s more work to be done before the test makes its way to your local hospital. To start, the team needs to validate that it works for a wide variety of patients, including those who come from different ethnic backgrounds.

Movano takes on Oura with the Evie smart ring designed ‘for women’

Health company Movano has teased its first smart ring, the Evie, designed for health, fitness and cycle tracking. It looks like a rival to Oura’s latest smart ring and other health-tracking wearables, though the company says it’s “designed uniquely for women.” Movano plans to provide a closer look next week at CES 2023.

The ring made its debut at CES 2022 with no name and a similar design, but Movano has since changed course on price and other factors. It will sell the ring sometime in 2023 at a one-time price below $300 (there’s no exact date or price yet), rather than using a subscription model as it said last year. 

It offers many of the health metrics seen on Oura’s ring and wearables from Apple and others. It can measure heart rate, blood-oxygen, skin temperature variability, steps, calories, sleep, period and ovulation tracking, and more. Wearers will can get advice from health experts inside the app and it will meet medical device manufacturing standards, the company promised.

“As a medical device, Evie will go beyond the status quo of other wearables on the market,” said Movano CEO John Mastrototaro. “We are bringing together medical grade biometric data and insights in a comfortable and contemporary wearable.”

With the ability to measure steps, calories burned and specific activities, Evie can also be used as a fitness tracker. However, it’s primary purpose is to give a picture of overall health, “turning biometric data into actionable insights,” Movano wrote in the press release.

The company also promises security and privacy when transferring data to the cloud or health providers. It’s currently seeking all-important FDA clearance, which will dictate the release date. If that takes too long, though, it may come to market as a wellness device at first. The Evie smart ring will only be released in the US to start with, but may come to other markets later — we should learn more about it next week at CES 2023.