E7-19152. Ingenix, Inc.; Analysis of Proposed Consent Order to Aid Public Comment

AGENCY:

Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION:

Proposed Consent Agreement.

SUMMARY:

The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged violations of federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or practices or unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft complaint and the terms of the consent order—embodied in the consent agreement—that would settle these allegations.

DATES:

Comments must be received on or before October 17, 2007.

ADDRESSES:

Interested parties are invited to submit written comments. Comments should refer to “Ingenix, File No. 062 3190,” to facilitate the organization of comments. A comment filed in paper form should include this reference both in the text and on the envelope, and should be mailed or delivered to the following address: Federal Trade Commission/Office of the Secretary, Room 135-H, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, D.C. 20580. Comments containing confidential material must be filed in paper form, must be clearly labeled “Confidential,” and must comply with Commission Rule 4.9(c). 16 CFR 4.9(c) (2005).^[1] The FTC is requesting that any comment filed in paper form be sent by courier or overnight service, if possible, because U.S. postal mail in the Washington area and at the Commission is subject to delay due to heightened security precautions. Comments that do not contain any nonpublic information may instead be filed in electronic form as part of or as an attachment to email messages directed to the following e-mail box: [e-mail].

The FTC Act and other laws the Commission administers permit the collection of public comments to consider and use in this proceeding as appropriate. All timely and responsive public comments, whether filed in paper or electronic form, will be considered by the Commission, and will be available to the public on the FTC Web site, to the extent practicable, at http://.www.ftc.gov. As a matter of discretion, the FTC makes every effort to remove home contact information for individuals from the public comments it receives before placing those comments on the FTC website. More information, including routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, may be found in the FTC's privacy policy, at http://www.ftc.gov/​ftc/​privacy.htm.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Rebecca E. Kuehn, Bureau of Consumer Protection, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20580, [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Pursuant to section 6(f) of the Federal Trade Commission Act, 38 Stat. 721, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and § 2.34 of the Commission Rules of Practice, 16 CFR 2.34, notice is hereby given that the above-captioned consent agreement containing a consent order to cease and desist, having been filed with and accepted, subject to final approval, by the Commission, has been placed on the public record for a period of thirty (30) days. The following Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes the terms of the consent agreement, and the allegations in the complaint. An electronic copy of the full text of the consent agreement package can be obtained from the FTC Home Page (for September 17, 2007), on the World Wide Web, at http://www.ftc.gov/​os/​2007/​09/​index.htm. A paper copy can be obtained from the FTC Public Reference Room, Room 130-H, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20580, either in person or by calling [phone].

Public comments are invited, and may be filed with the Commission in either paper or electronic form. All comments should be filed as prescribed in the ADDRESSES section above, and must be received on or before the date specified in the DATES section.

Analysis of Agreement Containing Consent Order to Aid Public Comment

The Federal Trade Commission has accepted, subject to final approval, an agreement containing a consent order from Ingenix, Inc. (“respondent” or “Ingenix”).

The proposed consent order has been placed on the public record for thirty (30) days for receipt of comments by interested persons. Comments received during this period will become part of the public record. After thirty (30) days, the Commission will again review the agreement and the comments received, and will decide whether it should withdraw from the agreement or make final the agreement’s proposed order.

Ingenix markets MedPoint, a data aggregation service that provides individual medical profiles to health and life insurance companies. Insurance companies use MedPoint for underwriting or claims review purposes. The medical profile generated by MedPoint analyzes the individual’s prescription drug history, and provides, based on that analysis, potential medical conditions that may be present and predictive scores for the individual.

The Commission’s complaint alleges that the medical profile generated for the MedPoint service is a consumer report and that respondent is a consumer reporting agency, as those terms are defined in Sections 603(d) and (f) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. §§ 1681a(d) and (f). The complaint alleges that the respondent’s failure to provide the “Notice To Users of Consumer Reports: Obligations of Users Under the FCRA” (“Notice to Users”), the required content of which is found in 16 CFR 698, Appendix H, is a violation of Section 607(d) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1681e(d).

The proposed consent order contains provisions designed to prevent respondent from engaging in similar acts and practices in the future.

Part I of the proposed order requires respondent to provide the Notice To Users to any user or prospective user of any medical profile generated by MedPoint that constitutes a consumer report, or of any other consumer report.

Part II.A. of the proposed order requires respondent to maintain or continue to maintain reasonable procedures to limit the furnishing of consumer reports to those with a permissible purpose, as required by Section 607(a) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1681e(a).

Part II.B. of the proposed order requires respondent to follow or continue to follow reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy of the information concerning the individuals about whom the reports relates, as required by Section 607(b) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1681e(b).

Part II.C. of the proposed order requires respondent to maintain or continue to maintain reasonable procedures to ensure compliance with Section 611 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1681i, “Procedure in case of disputed accuracy.”

Part II.D. of the proposed order requires respondent to conduct or continue to conduct a reasonable reinvestigation in cases of disputed accuracy, as required by Section 611 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1681i.

Part II.E. of the proposed order requires respondent to comply or continue to comply with the Disposal of Consumer Report Information and Records Rule, 16 C.F.R. Part 682.

Part III of the proposed order contains a document retention requirement. It requires respondent to maintain and upon request make available to the Commission for inspection and copying documents demonstrating compliance with the requirements of Parts I and II of the proposed order.

Part IV of the proposed order requires respondent to distribute copies of the order to various principals, officers, directors, and managers, employees, agents, and representatives having decision-making responsibilities with respect to MedPoint or any other consumer report.

Part V of the proposed order requires respondent to notify the Commission of any changes in corporate structure that might affect compliance with the order.

Part VI of the proposed order requires respondent to file with the Commission one or more reports detailing its compliance with the order.

Part VII of the proposed order is a “sunset” provision, dictating the conditions under which the order will terminate twenty years from the date it is issued or twenty years after a complaint is filed in federal court, by either the United States or the FTC, alleging any violation of the order.

The purpose of this analysis is to facilitate public comment on the proposed order. It is not intended to constitute an official interpretation of the proposed order or to modify in any way its terms.

By direction of the Commission.

Donald S. Clark,

Secretary.

Footnotes

1.  The comment must be accompanied by an explicit request for confidential treatment, including the factual and legal basis for the request, and must identify the specific portions of the comment to be withheld from the public record. The request will be granted or denied by the Commission’s General Counsel, consistent with applicable law and the public interest. See Commission Rule 4.9(c), 16 CFR 4.9(c).