A class action lawsuit against RateMDs.com has been certified by the Supreme Court of British Columbia at the request of Dr. Ramona Bleuler, a Vancouver-based physician. The lawsuit alleges that RateMDs is violating provincial privacy laws and infringing on the right to privacy by posting profiles and ratings of health professionals without their consent. Bleuler also claims that the accuracy of reviews is not verified, and health professionals cannot remove their profiles from the website. RateMDs features profiles with contact information and user-submitted reviews of health professionals. The lawsuit affects health professionals in several provinces, including British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Quebec.
RateMDs defended itself by stating that the information on their website is publicly available and non-personal, therefore not violating privacy laws. The defendants argued that health professionals do not have a reasonable expectation of privacy over the ratings and reviews on RateMDs.com, and that the reviews serve the public interest by helping patients make informed decisions. However, Judge Michael Thomas disagreed with this argument and stated that the fact that the information is publicly available does not determine whether privacy has been violated. He also pointed out that health professionals may feel pressured to participate in a way that could violate their professional obligations or allow inaccurate ratings to remain on the website.
Judge Thomas further stated that the privacy issues with RateMDs go beyond just publishing names and contact information, but also involve collecting, centralizing, and competitively ranking professionals by a for-profit entity. He determined that it is not “plain and obvious” that the plaintiff does not have a reasonable expectation of privacy over the information published by RateMDs. Bleuler argued that while individuals have the right to post reviews, the breach of privacy lies in RateMDs soliciting and creating a repository of reviews from which health professionals are ranked. RateMDs, on the other hand, accused Bleuler of attempting to stifle criticism of her medical practice by making a privacy claim. RateMDs did not respond to requests for comment at the time of publication.
In his decision, Judge Thomas acknowledged that the information published by RateMDs may give rise to a violation of privacy, even if it is publicly available or concerns professional activities. He expressed concern that health professionals may feel pressured to engage with the website in a way that may compromise their professional obligations or allow inaccurate ratings to persist. The judge highlighted the impact of aggregating reviews and creating comparative rankings of health professionals based on those reviews, which he deemed a breach of privacy. The lawsuit is significant as it affects health professionals in multiple provinces and raises important questions about the collection, management, and disclosure of personal information by for-profit entities like RateMDs.
Overall, the class action lawsuit against RateMDs.com raises important questions about privacy, professional obligations, and the rights of health professionals to control their information and reputation online. The lawsuit alleges that RateMDs is violating privacy laws by posting profiles and ratings without consent and by ranking health professionals based on user-submitted reviews. While RateMDs argues that the information on their website is publicly available and serves the public interest, Judge Michael Thomas disagreed and raised concerns about the impact on health professionals’ privacy and professional obligations. The outcome of this lawsuit could have significant implications for online review platforms and the rights of individuals to control their personal information online.
