Prof. Matt Bodie Interviewed by Philadelphia Inquirer About Release of Healthcare Workers’ Private Information

Professor Matthew Bodie, Robins Kaplan Professor of Law, was interviewed by the Philadelphia Inquirer about the release of web links that publicly revealed the daily work schedules and cell phone number of thousands of Philadelphia-area healthcare workers, information that hospital traditionally do not make available online. The information was published online through a popular scheduling service, QGenda. Experts said the online availability of internal information raises serious security and privacy concerns and leaving providers vulnerable to being targeted by dissatisfied patients, or individuals who disapprove of the type of medicine a doctor practices. Prof. Bodie said employee privacy exists in a legal gray area, with protections often dependent on institutional policies. He said publicly sharing schedules and cell numbers does “feel invasive, especially if employees didn’t know about it.”