Government Health Data Base

The Belmont Bear · Guru

Government Health Data Base

2-Smiths · Veteran Member

Ah yes. This old chestnut again...

You have to be a bit suss about any Govt. information base to which you are "opted in" by default. The two major concerns driving our decision to opt out were:

1) Perceived "insecurity" of the system (including but not limited to the fact that some 900,000 "Medical professionals and medical-aligned personnel" would potentially have access to the records, with the user having little control over who has access, (leaving aside "bad actor" breaches such as happened in the U.S and Singapore), and

2) Several precedents where Governments of the day have allowed personal data to be used/accessed by private interests (E.g. So-called credit reference agencies - who also have data aggregation/marketing arms - having unfettered access to the electoral roll).

Plenty of people are happy to have a My Health record. Just as long as they are happy about the inevitable (later) "mission creep", where Private Health insurers and others will also have access.

-- Edited by 2-Smiths on Thursday 31st of January 2019 09:48:46 AM

Possum3 · Guru

1984 Beware! My personal privacy is already up the spout with so many Government Authorities, does it really matter anymore - in my case Yes. I love travelling and having some rather major medical incidents in the past, I believe that the ability to access current and past medical information may be the key to my chance of survival in the future. If Communist China ends up knowing my requirements for medications, great they may just give up the whole spy game due to boredom of the first order.

Yuglamron · Guru

My biggest gripe about the Opt out option.

Why have it for medical records only.

Today I saw an appeal by a young mother whose baby has a curable condition if they can find a match in blood from umbilical cords after the babies are born. I'm told these are "Binned" become medical waste. She is appealing so people are aware of the 25.000 kids Worldwide who need the blood to survive.

I understand that some people have ethical problems with organ donations etc. Personally I am in favour and have not opted out of the donation system.

It seems such a shame that with all the medical advances we have today that because Governments around the world do not look after people's data and sell it off for a fast buck we get to the point where we don't trust them, and the good that we can get from Health records available to Doctors online is negated by Pollies and private companies making profit from health records.

2-Smiths · Veteran Member

Yuglamron wrote:
My biggest gripe about the Opt out option.
Why have it for medical records only.
Today I saw an appeal by a young mother whose baby has a curable condition if they can find a match in blood from umbilical cords after the babies are born. I'm told these are "Binned" become medical waste. She is appealing so people are aware of the 25.000 kids Worldwide who need the blood to survive.
I understand that some people have ethical problems with organ donations etc. Personally I am in favour and have not opted out of the donation system.
It seems such a shame that with all the medical advances we have today that because Governments around the world do not look after people's data and sell it off for a fast buck we get to the point where we don't trust them, and the good that we can get from Health records available to Doctors online is negated by Pollies and private companies making profit from health records.

Yep. Exactly.

Something which could have been a reasonable thing, has been (and will be) subverted for commercial interests.

Perhaps if there were an ability (or more an appetite) to prosecute Politicians for past misdeeds (via a properly-constituted Federal ICAC). we'd have Pollies making decisions which were better aligned with the Public interest...?

Whenarewethere · Guru

On ABC RN the other day about 25% of hospitals & medical services do not have the facilities to access the data. I "assume" the federal government is going to cough up the money for computer systems & tech support for access. We opted out.

Goldfinger · Senior Member

I'm remaining in: I have the choice to remove whatever I want from the record...I don't remember tetanus shots etc...good idea to have accurate data base...organ donor instructions can be

the only item if you so choose...you can access what your Doctors are uploading the 'My Health Record'....I think its a great idea that multiple "Doctor Shopping for scripts" may be

exposed...all taxpayers pay for the abuses.....for me, as a Traveller that may find myself somewhere unconscious any info for a treating Doctor/Hospital would be welcome.... the Pros

outweigh the Cons for me...

....to each his own.....Hoo Roo

erad · Guru

I make no comment about personal security etc, but there seems to be a misconception about opting out TODAY. You can opt out at any time. Personally, I don't have issues with the security - there are plenty of places around where people can find my personal details, so what is another one? Hopefully details won't be accessed by the naughty people, but I bet that will get in some time.

aussie_paul · Guru

Possum3 wrote:
1984 Beware! My personal privacy is already up the spout with so many Government Authorities, does it really matter anymore - in my case Yes. I love travelling and having some rather major medical incidents in the past, I believe that the ability to access current and past medical information may be the key to my chance of survival in the future. If Communist China ends up knowing my requirements for medications, great they may just give up the whole spy game due to boredom of the first order.

Yep. 1984 Beware! Not sure what that means Possum3??

Aussie Paul. smile

The Belmont Bear · Guru

I have no doubt that there will be some benefits in having a national health data base but it will come with the risk of being hacked and the data being misused or sold on to insurance or drug companies etc. Really my main gripe is that you have to formally opt out by today or your records will be entered into the system. Shouldnt the choice have been to participate with the default being that your records will not be entered ? They said that up until October more than a million people had already opted out including some doctors who have said that they will not be entering the data. The politicians are smart enough to know that if the choice had been given to people to opt in rather than out this particiipation rate would probably have been reversed.

Cheers

BB

Possum3 · Guru

aussie_paul wrote:
Possum3 wrote:
1984 Beware! Not sure what that means Possum3??

More cynical tongue in cheek than anything else - The govt knows whatever they need to know - this data base is no more intrusive than what the ATO has in theirs, nor the AFP's, Centrelink, Medicare, etc. Yet this one may actually have some benefits to the travelling Nomads.

PeterX · Senior Member

Why would a doctor update myHealth records rather than their notes in their surgery as they currently do?

rockylizard · Guru

PeterX wrote:
Why would a doctor update myHealth records rather than their notes in their surgery as they currently do?

Gday...

If they are like my doc then it is updated on their database while I am at the appointment and while they are listening to my issues and their diagnosis/test/scripts etc.

That automatically updates the eHealth record I think.

I have had my eHealth record since 2012 ... I find it helpful although most of the docs I visit on the road don't access it. So I have a printout I get from the eHealth website which I then give to them.

Saves me HEAPS of explaining .... and trying to remember all those damned mediation names - and when they did this or that to my poor suffering body.

Cheers - John

hako · Guru

I haven't opted out and don't care either way, BUT I check my record online very now and then to see what's in it and it is empty - no records or entries despite my 3 hospital stays and numerous blood tests and doctor/specialist visits in the past 3 years. Why?.....they just haven't bothered to enter the data. So really, what use is it?

Good Luck.

deverall11 · Guru

There are quite a number of issues with this that may never get resolved, security is one.
It is not clear what other information they will have about you - if hacked, can this be used
to steal your identity.
They say you can opted out at any time and opted in at any time. How is my record, if at all,
updated when I opted back in with the events that happened whilst I opted out?
Larry

dorian · Guru

Yuglamron wrote:
Personally I am in favour and have not opted out of the donation system.

I thought, "who would want my old organs" ...

https://www.organdonor.gov/statistics-stories/donation-stories/carlton-liver-donor.html

"Carlton, a retired teacher and devoted father, was a remarkable person who never stopped teaching his family about the many wonders of the world. Carlton himself was one of those wonders. Just nine days shy of his 93rd birthday, he became an organ donor. Carlton's wife and children made the decision to donate Carlton's liver following his death from a brain hemorrhage.

Thanks to this gift, a 69-year-old woman suffering from end-stage liver disease is alive and progressing well. And in his final and perhaps most valuable lesson of all, Carlton illustrated that age is no barrier to sharing life."

aussietraveller · Guru

I totally agree with Aussie Paul your personal information is already available through many govt departments and organisations that are potential hacking targets. This medical information system can actually save your life so we have both chosen to stay in and continue to travel around our fantastic country, confident that if needed our medical details can be accessed to give us appropriate medical care.

PeterX · Senior Member

Medical information is most valuable to hackers. Even more than credit card information.
It will be a irresistible target for hackers.

Also consider , credit cards can be cancelled, health information could not be changed, some people could be bribed by hackers for a lifetime.

I would disagree with the statement, that all the information is available. I would say most of it may be available to different degrees already online, but not all in one place.