Debate Over Patient Privacy Control in Electronic Health Records

Abstract

The percentage of physicians using an electronic health record (EHR) system has increased substantially in the last year, with encouragement from Medicare and Medicaid incentives included in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Half of all office-based physicians use some form of EHR, according to a survey in December by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, although only 10 percent have fully functional EHR systems.

Keywords: EHRs, Privacy, Patient controls, sensitive information, sequestration, granular control

JEL Classification: K31, K32