Under a Washington State pilot program beginning in 2009, 18,000 residents in three communities will receive health record bank accounts, Health Data Management reports.
Legislation approved in 2005 and 2007 authorized the Washington State Health Care Authority to award grants totaling $1.7 million to launch the pilots. The grant recipients are:
- Community Choice Healthcare Network;
- Critical Junctures Institute;
- Inland Northwest Health Services; and
- St. Joseph Hospital Foundation.
For the pilots, Google Health will partner with Inland Northwest Health Services and Community Choice Healthcare Network, and Microsoft HealthVault will partner with St. Joseph Hospital Foundation and the Critical Junctures Institute.
Health Record Bank Pilot Details
The pilot projects will be private-public partnerships, and a trusted entity will serve as the health record bank.
The health record bank will collect patients' paper and electronic health records from physicians, hospitals, laboratories, pharmacies and other sources, and patients will control who can access their data.
Under the health record bank model, funding comes through account fees charged to individuals or sponsors (Health Data Management, 8/21).