Australia's Digital Health Interoperability: AMA Calls for Government Mandate
AMA Calls for Government-Enforced Digital Interoperability - Medscape
Summary
The Australian Medical Association (AMA) argues that government legislation is necessary to break down silos in digital health and mandate data sharing among software providers.
Details
The AMA highlights the significant challenge of poor interoperability between various health record systems, arguing that legislative action forcing data sharing is essential. They state that without a nationally agreed regulatory framework enforced by law, the benefits of true interoperability cannot be realized. The article references international examples like the US 21st Century Cures Act and the EU Data Act, which prohibit information blocking and establish mandatory interoperability standards. The AMA advocates for similar penalties in Australia for non-compliant vendors. Currently, while the Australian government is advancing standardization through programs like Sparked (using FHIR), the AMA views this as insufficient, demanding legal compulsion. Furthermore, the government has implemented a 'share by default' policy requiring pathology and imaging providers to upload data to the My Health Record, which provides immediate financial incentives for sharing, though critics argue this merely 'deflects the issue.'
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