My Health Record opt-out period begins

EVERY Australian as of this week can choose not to have an online summary of their health information created, but Australia’s peak body for rural and remote health is urging people to remain part of the scheme.

A “My Health Record” will automatically be created for all Australians by the end of this year, unless they opt out.

The opt-out period began on Monday and runs until October 15, and National Rural Health Alliance (NRHA) chief executive officer Mark Diamond has implored people to embrace the scheme.

“Simply put, My Health Record can save lives,” he said.

“Australians living in rural and remote areas are more likely to end up in an emergency department from from a heart attack, car accident or diabetic coma,” he said.

“If they’re unconscious, and the medical team doesn’t have access to their health history, the team may not be able to provide life-saving care.”

There has been some criticism about My Health Record, including that it cannot be relied upon as a clinical record, it creates a security risk, and that the scheme should have asked people to opt in, not opt out.

In an article for The Conversation, Monash University lecturer in software engineering Robert Merkel wrote the introduction of My Health Record had “serious privacy implications”.

“The combination of improved access to records and less-than-perfect information security practices in the health sector is likely, in my view, to increase the risk of privacy breaches.”

Mr Diamond said the NRHA was satisfied that the Australian Digital Health Agency “was using the most robust security measures to safeguard people’s health records, and the risk associated with My Health Record is small”.

Corangamite federal member Sarah Henderson said My Health Record was optional.

“Some medical professionals are saying very clearly that having access to a patient’s history can really help with the treatment of a person, but at the end of the day, this is a very much a matter of individual choice, and the Turnbull Government respects that choice.”

To opt out, head to myhealthrecord.gov.au/for-you-your-family/opt-out-my-health-record.