The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT has launched a contest inviting individuals to submit two-minute videos highlighting how the Blue Button feature can be used to access personal health information online, Government Health IT reports (Mosquera, Government Health IT, 10/2).
Background on Blue Button
In 2010, the Department of Veterans Affairs launched a Blue Button tool to help veterans access and exchange their personal health data in a standard, consistent manner.
The project has caught on in the private sector, with insurers -- such as Aetna and UnitedHealthcare -- launching their own Blue Button tools (iHealthBeat, 9/4).
Contest Details
The videos must:
In addition, the contestants should use the videos to explain:
- How they have used the Blue Button feature if they have access to it; or
- How they would use the tool and how important it would be to them if they had access to it (Government Health IT, 10/2).
According to ONC's Federal Register notice, the videos should "motivate and inspire others to leverage technology to better manage their health and be more engaged partners in their health and health care."
The videos will be judged on their:
- Number of YouTube views;
- Creativity;
- Potential impact;
- Quality of content;
- Narrative; and
- Visual appearance.
Prizes, Deadline
The prizes for the contest include:
- $3,000 for the first-place winner;
- $2,000 for the second-place winner;
- $1,250 each for two third-place winners; and
- $600 for one popular-choice winner.
The deadline for submissions is Nov. 13 (Conn, Modern Healthcare, 10/2).