Baltimore Sun Examines Google, Microsoft Personal Health Record Systems
The Baltimore Sun on Thursday examined "two of the most-likely-to-be-huge" personal health records services: Google Health and Microsoft's Health Vault. According to the Sun, some experts believe that within four years PHRs "will be ubiquitous," and people will be able to "store information in one digital location, and then share it with whomever [they] choose."
Google Health, which "envisions itself more as a unified home for your health information," is better suited to people seeking a "site that will take a bit more time to set up but will allow you to use the information more flexibly," the Sun reports. Microsoft says that HealthVault is not a PHR. According to the Sun, Health Vault "sees itself as a hub for a variety of online health tools," and is better suited to "hook up your medical gadgets or store your medical documents." Both are available at no cost.
Other companies that offer PHR services include Revolution Health, from AOL founder Steve Case, and Dossia, which is funded by AT&T and Wal-Mart. However, most observers believe Microsoft and Google likely will dominate the PHR market. "It's like two planets circling the sun," David Kibbe, director of health information technology for the American Academy of Family Physicians, said, adding, "There may be a few asteroids out there, but it's not the same thing. These are the two planetary bodies" (Kohn, Baltimore Sun, 6/26).
