
A bill passed by the state Senate would prevent big tech companies from collecting and selling Michiganders’ reproductive health care data without their consent.
LANSING—A bill headed to a vote in the state House of Representatives aims to stop Michiganders’ private reproductive health data from being shared and sold without consent.
The legislation, Senate Bill 1082, was approved in the Senate last week. It’s designed to protect personal details that Michiganders often log into their smart watches, fitness trackers, and apps to track their health data—including their stress levels, heart rates, and menstruation cycles.
If passed and signed into law, the bill would specifically prohibit the collection of Michiganders’ reproductive health data without first obtaining their consent, as well as create new state regulations for what entities are allowed to do with that personal data once it’s been collected.
Democratic state lawmakers said the legislation will ultimately help protect the safety of Michiganders’ digital health data—which could become particularly important once Republicans take over majority control of the state House of Representatives in January.
“This feels like a very urgent need for us to get this done while we have a window in Michigan with the Democratic majority for the next few weeks,” state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, sponsor of the digital privacy bill, told the Associated Press before the bill passed the Senate on Thursday.
After the overturning of Roe v. Wade, some women in states with strict abortion bans feared their health data could be used to track their reproductive status. Apps that track menstrual cycles became a major focus point—ultimately pushing several states to pass similar legislation aimed at keeping the data from being used to target people who are seeking reproductive health care.
Abortion is constitutionally protected in Michigan. But McMorrow does not trust President-elect Donald Trump’s campaign promise to veto a national abortion ban, nor his efforts to distance himself from Project 2025, which proposed a rollback on abortion and contraception access.
Period tracking apps allow women to take detailed day-by-day notes about their health. They can also provide a detailed log of pregnancies and miscarriages, which can be sold to data brokers, including to firms that could use the data to target people who are seeking abortions.
“These tools are really valuable,” McMorrow told the Associated Press last week. “I just want to make sure that the guardrails are there when indications from the incoming federal administration is they would potentially weaponize the data in a way that is very dangerous.”
Federal law bars medical providers from sharing health data without a patient’s consent, but doesn’t prevent tech companies from tracking and selling personal data to third-party firms. Changes have never gained momentum, largely because of opposition from the tech industry.
McMorrow’s bill would require businesses or organizations to use reproductive health data only for the services they provide, as well as require Michiganders be informed of how the data is being used. And in order to sell that data, an entity would need explicit, signed consent from the consumer. Michiganders would also have the option to opt out from their data being sold.
The legislation would also regulate retailers, who often compile data to target consumers with ads, and the use of geofencing—which allows marketers to target consumers with ads based on their location. The bill would also prohibit companies from using location information to identify individuals receiving reproductive health care and then targeting them with advertisements.
Similar legislation has been passed in other states with the aim of keeping personal health data from being used to target people who are seeking abortions. McMorrow called on her colleagues to pass the bill this year—or risk it being blocked by Republicans next year.
Anti-abortion groups have opposed the bills because it could impact their advertising efforts. Every Republican in the Senate voted against the legislation last week—namely out of concern that the law would prevent anti-abortion groups from targeting women who are seeking help.
Still, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is expected to sign the bill into law if it clears the House this month.
In 2022, Whitmer called on several of the world’s biggest tech companies—including Apple and Meta—to take additional steps to protect people’s health data, particularly from anti-abortion “extremists” who would use the data to “go after women” seeking reproductive health care. She also called on the companies to be more transparent about their digital data collection efforts.
“Every Michigander deserves privacy and control over their data,” Whitmer said. “If it fell into the wrong hands, our digital footprint could tell someone where we are, who we were with, what we bought—even intimate details about our health. Without adequate protections, that data could be used to go after women seeking reproductive health care or to prosecute nurses and doctors for doing their jobs. … We must do more to protect everyone’s fundamental right to privacy.”
@gandernewsroom Michigan Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks (D-Grand Rapids) is expecting a busy few weeks in Lansing as Democratic lawmakers look to pass a flurry of bills before the holidays.
Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks (D-Grand Rapids) said Democratic lawmakers also aim to pass legislation that would protect and expand access to contraception and birth control before anti-abortion Republicans take charge of the state House of Representatives in January.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
READ MORE: Michigan Dems advance bills requiring insurance to cover birth control
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