- Font Size:
- Default font size
- Larger font size
BY GINA CZARK
Times Staff Writer | Thursday, July 22, 2004 | (No comments posted.)
Medicare patients in Indiana will be among the first in the country to view their medical histories and check their claim status online.
The program will be available in late fall to the estimated 800,000 Medicare recipients in the state. If successful, officials predict the program would be expanded nationwide as early as 2005.
The initiative, announced Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, comes after the Bush administration pledged to have computerized medical records available to Americans within 10 years. The government also announced Wednesday it would pay for $50 million in grants for community and state experiments in creating electronic health records.
Officials hope this program will encourage the use of electronic health care systems, considering just 13 percent of hospitals and no more than 28 percent of private practices use them now nationwide, according to Health and Human Services.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, which is part of the federal agency, is spearheading the initial test. Officials there predict Indiana was chosen because it has been a leader in information technology. Other factors include the state's medium-sized population and its number of Medicare recipients.
Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson said Indianapolis, in particular, is the furthest along in setting up computerized health care networks. One of the systems, he said, would allow doctors to immediately get access to vital information about a new or emergency room patients seeking treatment away from their regular doctor.
Officials with AdminaStar Federal, which processes all of the state's Medicare claims, said final security details for the site are being ironed out.
"We don't want to release a tool that is not 100 percent secure," said Michael Davis, the group's manager for public relations and communications.
"There is a level of excitement, because this is just one more step that allows seniors to have early control and access to their information," Davis said. "This will make it easier for them to track what is going on with their healthcare."
While the Internet site will serve as another option for patients, it will not erase information methods currently in place, including the U.S. Postal Service and 1-800-MEDICARE.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Gina Czark can be reached at gczark@nwitimes.com or (219) 933-3234.
How the online Medicare program will work
In the next several months, a link will be available at http://www.cms.gov. When patients visit the site, they will be asked to create an account by using personal information. After that, users will be able to view their medical histories, recent tests and status of unpaid claims.
Source: AdminaStar Federal, which processes Indiana's Medicare claims
Back to story No comments posted.
- It wasn't clear, concise or focused on the topic in the story.
- It was a personal attack, vulgar, explicit or degrading, used actual or implied profanity or contained potentially libelous statements.
- It accused someone of being guilty of a crime.
- It promoted violence or illegal acts.
- It contained telephone numbers or street addresses, or e-mail addresses and links to Web sites other than nwi.com or government agencies.
In no way do these comments represent the views of The Times or Lee Enterprises.
Passionate views, pointed criticism and critical thinking are welcome. Name-calling, crude and profane language and personal abuse are not welcome.
Reader comments will not be edited - they will be approved or declined. They may be used in the print edition of the newspaper.
If you feel a posted comment has violated these guidelines, please email our New Media team the commenter's name, the comment and a link to the article.
For more information please read our Terms of Service.
Post a comment Once your comments are approved, they will appear here.
» More Region & State Stories