Kaiser Permanente Partners with HealthVault

Kaiser Permanente, the largest not-for-profit health care plan in the U.S. - is partnering with Microsoft's HealthVault on a pilot project to transfer medical records.

The United States’ largest not-for-profit health plan Kaiser Permanente has announced it will be participating in a pilot project to enable the transfer of medical records from its own systems to Microsoft’s HealthVault online health site. Initially, the project will be limited to volunteers selected from KP’s 156,000 employees, but if the project works out, the service could be extended to KP’s nearly 9 million members. The announcement could me a major feather in the cap of Microsoft HealthVault, which is competing with Google Health to offer consumers a safe way to tore and selectively enable access to heath care records online—although the entire field is fraught with significant privacy concerns.

“We’re very pleased to work with Kaiser to deliver innovative online health services focused on improving the quality of care and the health and wellness of individuals and families,” said Microsoft’s corporate VP for health solutions Peter Neupert, in a statement. “As the universe of online health applications continues to grow, people will learn how technology can empower them and their trusted providers to make the most informed decisions about their health and care.”

The program will enable data transfers between KP’s own My Health Manager application to HealthVault; according to Microsoft, transfers will be conducted in strict adherence to federal standards, and the system has “advanced safeguards” to protect members’ personal data. KP’s My Health Manager tool is noted in the industry for the depth of information it provides: consumers can typically see both the history of medical procedures, appointments, referrals, and test, but also the results of those tests and, in some cases, direct feedback from physicians. More than two million KP members use the organization’s My Health Manager.

The goal of online health information systems is to provide consumers with control over their own medical records, along with controlling who has access to them and in what circumstances.

News of the Kaiser Permanente pilot program comes just as Microsoft kicks off its HealthVault Solutions Conference, showcasing 40 or so applications and devices that are already designed to leverage the HealthVault platform.