Smart Card Alliance Releases White Paper on Smart Card Benefits for U.S. Health Care

March 7, 2007 // Published as a news service by IHS

The paper examines smart card use in health care today and suggests additional applications for consideration.

As the health care industry is increasingly challenged with identity fraud, difficult insurance claims, decentralized storage of medical records, thin financial margins and government demand for secure, portable and confidential patient information, the need for effective use of information technology (IT) is becoming essential, said the Smart Card Alliance.

However, increased computerization, reliance on databases and movement of sensitive patient information require strict controls to safeguard the security and confidentiality of health care records.

"In an electronic health care world, information access with data protection is a key concern, fueled by legislation and an inherent need for patient privacy," said Randy Vanderhoof, executive director of the Smart Card Alliance. "This white paper explains how smart card technology presents a unique opportunity to enable innovative health care solutions that combine secure information access and management with data mobility and patient privacy."

The white paper describes and gives examples of the benefits that smart cards provide in health care applications including:

• Supporting the privacy and security requirements mandated by Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) legislation.
• Reducing health care paperwork.
• Reducing the incidence of fraud in health benefit claims - a significant issue for the federal government.
• Improving the health care insurance claims process.
• Providing clean data for eligibility verification and claims processing.
• Enhancing patient control and privacy of electronic health care information.
• Enabling reliable interaction with a wide range of systems - over the Internet or offline.

"In the long run, the data carried and accessed by smart health cards can not only save lives, but can also save the health care industry billions of dollars," said Vanderhoof.

The white paper, written for executives and managers, is available at no charge from the Smart Card Alliance Web site at http://www.smartcardalliance.org.

Source: Smart Card Alliance.