| "Outdated HIT Plans" - Google Warns Feds |
 |
| Written by Cynthia Atoji | ||||||||
| Monday, 17 August 2009 13:46 | ||||||||
Google is, of course, a leader in innovation. And it’s been doing some major jockeying in the healthcare race, including the beta site, Google Health, the start of what the Seattle-based company hopes is a next-generation health system, empowering consumers to create their own personal health records (PHR). For example, right now, over 100 million people can now access their prescription history through Google Health. A new venture capital fund, Google Ventures http://www.google.com/ventures/ will invest in innovative start-up companies, including those in health IT. And this is just the tip of the iceberg for the firm, which aims to dominate the medical realm, just as it’s currently the king of Web search. That’s why when Google chair and CEO Eric Schmidt says the Obama administration’s current health IT plans are outdated you have to wonder. He spoke up during a meeting earlier this month, saying that the current route of EHR (electronic health record adoption) encourages clinicians to use antiquated health IT systems that could hinder innovation. During a meeting of PCAST (President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology), Schmidt said that instead, the use of Web-based technologies should be considered in lieu of a clunky database system. Current EHRs are proprietary and don’t interoperate, among other numerous issues. The Federal Government often lives up to its nickname, the Old Gray Mare. Let’s hope that the Old Gray Mare Ain’t What She Used to Be and is willing to try out some new fresh health IT pastures. Or, down the road, millions of Americans will be wondering why the billions of stimulus dollars and healthcare reform only ended up with the same-old, same old. | ||||||||
View all articles by this author
|
About the Author: Jeff Merron is a full-time freelance editor, journalist, and copywriter who has written for the New York Times Magazine, ESPN.com, Slate, Byte Magazine, Macworld, Consumers Digest, and many other national publications. He's also a regular contributor to IT Business Insider and 108, a baseball magazine. He has a Ph.D. in Mass Communication Research from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
|
