My Health opt-out choice coming soon for medical details

Consumers will soon be able to choose not to have their records included on the electronic healthcare register.

Australian Digital Health Agency chief executive Tim Kelsey.

One of Australia’s most significant yet controversial healthcare reforms, the introduction of an electronic record, is entering a new phase, with consumers set to be given the chance to opt out of the scheme.

The Australian Digital Health Agency has determined the three-month opt-out period for the My Health Record — formerly known as the Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record — will run from July 16 to ­October 15. Unless an individual chooses not to have a record and makes it known in that period, they will be given one.

About 5.7 million Australians already have a My Health Record but a decision by health ministers in August last year to make the system opt-out rather than opt-in means the next phase of the expansion will be crucial. Governments have spent more than $1 billion on the project, which promises centrally stored and accessible health records to not only facilitate an ­individual’s treatment but better support healthcare providers and, across the longer term, improve the system itself.

While the opt-out period raises the prospect of privacy and other security issues being debated, testing the reputation of the ADHA and the integrity of the project, ADHA chief executive Tim Kelsey remains confident in the ­design of My Health Record and its potential.

Anyone who changes their mind after the opt-out period will still be able to cancel their My Health Record or opt in, and there will be an education campaign to help ease the transition.

“My Health Record is about improving healthcare for all Australians,” Kelsey says. “My Health Record gives people control over who sees their health ­informa­tion.”

After the opt-out period, one month will be required to reconcile the data and to finalise processing of paper opt-out forms received from Australians living in remote locations and those who do not have access to a computer.

Two years of Medicare and Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme then will be uploaded unless an individual chooses not to include the information. Patients will be able to alter some aspects of how their My Health Record is used and are urged to discuss with their doctor or healthcare provider what test results and medical records are uploaded.

“Strict privacy control, set by an individual, is a central feature of My Health Record. Each person can control the information in his or her My Health Record, and the healthcare provider organisations that can have access,” Kelsey says.

Australian Medical Association president Michael Gannon gives My Health Record his endorsement.

“The current system of medical records means that we may have incomplete information on a ­patient, especially if the patient has recently seen another specialist or has been discharged from a hospital,” Gannon says.

“My Health Record will result in doctors having access to better information, in a more timely fashion, via secure means. Less time chasing up paperwork means more time can be spent treating our patients.”

Australian Healthcare and Hospitals Association chief Alison Verhoeven says the opt-out model helps balance the clinician’s need for information and the ­patient’s right to privacy.

“While further work is required to fully integrate with hospital clinical information systems, My Health Record now offers a ‘medicines view’ showing patient medications and related information, and an increasing number of clinical documents such as referrals, shared health summaries and pathology and diagnostic imaging reports,” Verhoeven says.

“This information will empower clinicians to make timely decisions in consultation with their patients.”

Consumers Health Forum chief Leanne Wells encourages Australians to learn more about the system and whether they want to be involved in the My Health Record revolution.

“My Health Record is a key step in the shift from health consumers as passive patients to consumers as active partners in their own care,” Wells says.

“For too long, healthcare has lagged behind in exploiting the clear benefits of information technology to provide prompt, secure and precise patient information. For these benefits to be realised and a consumer-centred and digitally enabled healthcare system to become a reality, consumers will need to be involved in using and improving innovations such as My Health Record.

“The clinical benefits of My Health Record for patients are ­significant and compelling: hospital admissions avoided, fewer ­adverse drug events, reduced duplication of tests, better co-­ordination of care for people with chronic and complex conditions, and better-informed treatment decisions.”

The federal government also has announced the Australian ­Institute of Health and Welfare will manage the use of My Health Record data for research and public health purposes, subject to a new framework. Secondary use of data is not expected to occur ­before 2020.