Sending Health Data Safely and Securely Over the Internet

Yesterday marked another milestone on the Nation’s journey to better health care through the use of electronic health records and health information technology. Two pilot projects were launched—one in Minnesota and the other in Rhode Island—for easily and securely transmitting personal health information via the Internet.

These efforts—combined with others that will soon be underway in Tennessee to support the Department of Veterans Affairs, and commercial providers in New York, Connecticut, Oklahoma, Texas, and California—mean a very important new tool is on schedule to enable the safe transmission of patient data over the Internet by healthcare providers, instead their having to rely on mail and fax.

This is a significant step toward meeting the Administration’s commitment to make health information exchange (HIE) accessible and practical for all the Nation’s clinicians.