Budget a boon for e-health

Government funding of $233.6 million for personally controlled electronic health records (PCEHRs), announced yesterday in the 2012 Australian federal Budget, will boost both the health and ICT sectors in Australia, according to the Australian Information Industry of Australia (AIIA).

The budget included $161.6 million to continue operation of the PCEHRs, with a further $4.6 million to be used to maintain safeguards for privacy-related aspects of PCEHRs.

Another $67.4 million will be the Commonwealth’s share of joint funding for the National E-Health Transition Authority (NEHTA) work program.

“The renewed commitment by the government to PCEHRs is a welcome move and the government is to be commended for its far-sighted and pragmatic approach to health sector reform generally and especially electronic health records,” said Suzanne Campbell, CEO at AIIA.

Campbell said continued funding of NEHTA would allow it to draw on Australia’s ICT industry to expedite implementation of PCEHRs.

AIIA’s chair of the National eHealth Taskforce Suzanne Roche said: “These moves give the sector certainty about ongoing support for a complex reform program that starts on 1 July and will take many years. Clear synergies with the potential for smart health applications on the back of the NBN will be key to the success of health reform in the future.”