SmartMoney sounds the alarm...and prompts the question:
How well are health care providers protecting sensitive patient info?
A Risky Rx for Your Digital Records
A Risky Rx for Your Digital Records
SmartMoney Magazine - By Tania Karas - June 12, 2012
Few health care trends have gotten as much press of late as the mad rush into electronic health records. Physicians, driven by the promose of better care, cost savings and nearly $23 billion in new federal incentive payments, are racing to turn their scribbled medical records into digital files. Thirty-five percent of hospitals now use such systems, more than double the share two years ago, according to U.S. government figures. bur for all the hype about electronic records, little attention has been paid to what some say is a serious weak spot: When those sensitive bits and bytes fall into the wrong hands, it's often patients who feel the pain.
Few health care trends have gotten as much press of late as the mad rush into electronic health records. Physicians, driven by the promose of better care, cost savings and nearly $23 billion in new federal incentive payments, are racing to turn their scribbled medical records into digital files. Thirty-five percent of hospitals now use such systems, more than double the share two years ago, according to U.S. government figures. bur for all the hype about electronic records, little attention has been paid to what some say is a serious weak spot: When those sensitive bits and bytes fall into the wrong hands, it's often patients who feel the pain.
Since 2009, there have been more than 420 security breaches involving the records of some 19 million patients, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office for Civil Rights. And such breaches are on the rise. >>Read more
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