Powerhouses in technology development such as Apple, Microsoft, Google, IBM, Amazon, Oracle and Salesforce join forces with health care providers to launch the new version of the Blue Button 2.0 Data Model, an innovative standard designed to provide beneficiaries with access to your medical information in one place, from a mobile application, and on any device.
Providing patients with permanent access to their health information through digital platforms means that they will have vital information on the devices they use every day. This is what the new program called CARIN Blue Buttonlooks for, it has been developed by private sector partners, which include consumer organizations, insurers and developers of digital health applications.
On July 30 of this year, the new standard that will provide Medicare beneficiaries in the US was announced at the Blue Button Developers conference at the White House in Washington D.C. Access to all information collected, including historical claims, from a single application will be available. Medicare in the US access to all information collected, including historical claims, from a single application.
This allows more than 44 million beneficiaries easy access to their health information, which gives them the opportunity to work with their doctor to make better care decisions for themselves and their families.
It’s planned to start tests with around 20 participating companies in September of this year, where, those involved in the preliminary process will perform "real-world tests" with the aim of preparing to launch products with the world standard in 2020.
It’s worth noting that the largest competitors in the
digital area have gathered to support this multidisciplinary effort. Seeing giants of the technological world on that list, along with a large number of health care providers, is a sign of the widespread use of Digital Health worldwide; which also means portability and interoperability in terms of ways to access medical information.
The next steps to move forward with the CARIN Blue Button® project are:
- Work on the development of standards.
- Establish health plans.
- Collaborate with state Medicaid agencies.
- Use third-party applications data mapping.
- Define specific value sets and develop implementation reference.
This is another example of the importance that Digital Health is charging worldwide, but also of the way in which international agreements are needed because no Organization, however large, can achieve it alone.
