2018/18: Should Australians opt out of My Health Record?
Introduction to the media issue
Video clip at right: On November 29, 2018, the ABC's Behind the News televised a segment explaining how My Health Record is intended to function and why some Australians are opting out.What they said...
' The more you dig into the creation and use of these databases and the potential for misuse, the more concerning it becomes'
Kerryn Phelps, former Australia Medical Association president and Independent federal member for Wentworth
'People will have control over their records. They will be able to set who can access them and control who has access to see different parts of their record. They will also be able to see who has accessed their records'
Sue Walker, Queensland University of Technology Health Information Management senior lecturer
The issue at a glance
The My Health Record is an online summary of an individual's health information which began to be established in 2016. It is intended to supply a centralised record of a patient's medical history which can be easily accessed and used by a range of medical practitioners.
On November 14, 2018, the federal Health Minister, Greg Hunt, extended the opt-out period for the My Health Record system until January 31, 2019.
Those Medicare card holders who do not make a choice by the new cut-off date, will have a My Health Record automatically created for them.
About six million Australians already have records and about 1.15 million have decided to opt out. About 300,000 have opted in and about 17 million are expected to be automatically enrolled once the deadline passes.
Software analysts, civil libertarians, unions and advocates for victims of family violence have raised privacy and security concerns about the system. On the other hand, some health groups have stressed its benefits in helping clinicians access patient health records and so provide more effective care.