[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 188 (Friday, September 28, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55211-55212]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-19152]


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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

[File No. 062 3190]


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

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Proposed Consent Agreement.

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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: [email protected].
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    \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).
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    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, (201) 
326-2252.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to section 6(f) of the Federal 
Trade Commission Act, 38 Stat. 721, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and Sec.  2.34 of 
the Commission Rules of Practice, 16 CFR 2.34, notice is

[[Page 55212]]

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 (202) 326-2222.
    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. 
Sec. Sec.  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. 
Sec.  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. Sec.  
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. Sec.  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. Sec.  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. Sec.  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.
[FR Doc. E7-19152 Filed 9-27-07: 8:45 am]
[Billing Code: 6750-01-S]