New Innovation Challenge Will Help People with Disabilities Access Their Health Records

We are extremely excited to announce the launch of a new Investing in Innovations mobile app challenge, the “EHR Accessibility Module Challenge.”

Improving Access to Health Records

ONC’s mission includes reducing health disparities, ensuring secure and protected patient health information, and reducing health care costs. As such, we are challenging multidisciplinary teams to create and test a module or application that makes it easy for people with disabilities to access their health information stored in electronic health records (EHRs). Individuals with disabilities constitute approximately 19 percent of the non-institutionalized population five years of age or older. Their health expenditures are estimated at $400 billion annually, more than a quarter of the national total (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000).

Health information technology (health IT) and EHRs hold great promise in improving the health outcomes and coordination of care for people with disabilities. The accessibility and usability of health IT is a matter of serious concern to people with a wide range of disabilities, including those who have vision, hearing, intellectual, manual dexterity, mental health, developmental, and other types of disabilities.

Mobile App Challenge Details

Do you think you have a game-changing design idea that can help improve access to health records for people with disabilities?

Now is the time to prove it! Submissions are due by July 23, 2012.

Keep in mind, ease of use will play a significant role in determining the winner as it is an area that desperately needs innovative thinking. Advances that help people with disabilities interact with their electronic health information could also expand into widespread use.

A range of prizes will be awarded to the highest finishers. The winner will receive $60,000 and an opportunity to demo the solution at a future, prominent conference!