Many people keep an emergency contact in their phone, generally labeled as ICE. If you use a passcode for your phone — which you should do — that contact, though, becomes locked underneath your code.

Last fall, Apple created a new feature called the “Medical ID,” which it keeps hidden in the iOS health app. When I talk with people about their phones, it’s often the feature most people have never heard of, but also the one that could save your life.

On your medical ID, you can fill out as much information as you want a medical provider (or a snooping colleague) to know, including allergies and your emergency contacts.

Disclaimer: I’m not a medical professional and those who have serious health conditions that generally require a medical bracelet or other identification probably shouldn’t rely on their cell phone to communicate that information.

That being said, filling out your medical ID to at least make your emergency contact accessible without needing to enter a passcode is important.

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