Oakland University to Offer Residents a ‘BioButton’ to Monitor Health

As college students are heading back to residence halls, new protocols and measures and continuously added.

This article has been updated with current information after changes made by Oakland University.

Oakland University is taking another step to monitor the COVID-19 outbreak. Students that reside on campus will be offered to wear a 'BioButton' on campus. The 'BioButton' is a piece of technology that is meant to be worn on the chest of the students and will connect to their mobile phones. This technological patch will monitor the wearer's vitals such as temperature and heart rate in real-time.

The university has stated that the 'BioButton' will be used as an effort to lower the risk of virus outbreaks. This new health screening tool will be used in conjunction with the daily health screenings already in place to determine if the individual should participate in campus activities. All information stays private and will not be shared with others.

When I first read about the BioButton this morning, the device was deemed as a requirement. Since then, Oakland University added a post to its Facebook page stating that the wearing of the device is not mandatory.

At first, several students at Oakland University did not agree with wearing the new 'BioButton' and have started a petition against the policy claiming an invasion of privacy. You can see the petition here. At the time of writing this article, the petition was just shy of the 2,500 signature goal.

On top of the 'BioButton,' residents at Oakland University will also undergo COVID-19 testing prior to move-in. Residents will also receive health kits upon move-in. Check out all of the protocols and safety measures here. 

Source: Oakland University and WDIV