Health Privacy in the Electronic Age

Abstract:     
Health care expenditure in the United States exceeds $2 trillion a year, and on a per capita basis far exceeds the expenditure of any other country. Much of this money is not well spent, as many studies have documented the inefficiency and waste in the public and private health care systems. Furthermore, despite the high cost of American health care, key measures of the nation’s health, such as infant mortality and life expectancy, lag well behind other developed countries.

Keywords: Electronic Health Records, EHR, Privacy, Nationwide Health Information Network, NHIN, HIPPA Privacy Rule, Personal Health Records, PHRs, Health Privacy

JEL Classifications: K32, K32

Accepted Paper Series