A Personal Health Record that is neither......
With my morning coffee, I catch up on all the relevant news articles. The 9-0 Patriots are favored by 16 over the Buffalo Bills, the Celtics are still undefeated, and BC beats Clemson to play in the ACC title game. All is well, right?
Well, I begin reading my email trying to catch up on some industry news. It then dawns on me that since Microsoft's initial release of its Personal Health Record (PHR) aptly called HealthVault, we haven't heard much about it given the source is Microsoft.
The PHR isn't new. However, wide spread use of one would be. Many of the large insurers have PHR's or "PHR like" tools for their members. The question with those sites is, for whose benefit are the sites designed? They are marketed as a tool to help people manage their medical care and will lead to safer, more effective health care. The technology will reduce preventable errors, such as medication errors, improve treatment for people with chronic disease, and lower overall health care costs.
While all of this would be great, isn't it self serving of the insurers? Aren't they just looking for a way to manage their risk and packaging it as a "useful tool" for their members?
So, what is Microsoft's angle? Is it just a maneuver to compete with Google? I understand that Microsoft plans to make money from advertising space and relationships with other "sponsors". There is even talk of partnering with insurance companies.
In a recent article in Insurance and Technology, Lonny Reisman, CEO of ActiveHealth, an independent Aetna subsidiary says data from insurance carriers would be a significant contribution to HealthVault. "What I would like to see happen is that, ultimately, consumers will have the ability to access data from their health plans, PBMs and other managed care entities so that the data residing in the HealthVault is as comprehensive as possible". He later says, "Then we'd have the additional advantage of being able to sort through and analyze all that data in an attempt to optimize the member's care."
Patient privacy will obviously be a major concern here, and fears of compromising it will likely be the biggest hurdle to adoption among both consumers and their doctors. So, let me get this straight, it is a personal health record but, Microsoft will have access to it as will insurers, physicians and other potential partners?
When does it stop becoming personal?
For a list of Personal Health Records available, click on the following link.
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