Do You Know Your Doctor's Email Address?
You Soon May…

Nationwide Program Takes Aim at Helping Doctors Communicate Through E-mail and Comply With a Looming Federal Deadline

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Available on Pathfire DMG as of:
Tuesday, Feb. 18th, 2003
ID# 10438

BACKGROUND

One of the last places to join the email era has been doctor's offices, but that may soon change. Using the internet to make your next doctor's appointment, ask a follow-up question, or receive results of your medical tests seems simple, but many doctors have serious privacy obstacles that prevent them from using electronic communications to better serve their patients. Also for many doctors, concerns about malpractice, reimbursement, and privacy of patient information have kept them from using email to communicate with patients. That may soon change.

The 1996 Health Insurance Portability And Accountability Act (or HIPAA) requires physicians to protect sensitive health information in all electronic correspondence by April 2003. A new, non-profit organization called HealthyEmail is bringing together professionals from throughout the industry and providing doctors and dentists with a free encryption program that will secure their email and help them meet the April deadline. This will enable doctors, insurers and others to communicate electronically with patients and others on sensitive matters.

U.S. medical practitioners can go to healthyemail.org to register, download the software and take advantage of the online educational tools, thus becoming able to communicate securely with patients, other providers or payers even if the people they are emailing do not have secure email capabilities. Patients can use HealthyEmail.org to communicate securely with their doctors as well, if he or she participates in the program.

SOUNDBITES

• Daniel Sands, MD, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Clinical Director for Electronic Patient Records and Communication at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Brookline, MA, Healthy Email Advisory Council
• Paul Tang, MD, Palo Alto Medical Foundation, Palo Alto, CA
• Stacy Smith, Executive Coordinator HealthyEmail, Dallas, TX
• Daniel S. Nutkis, VP, Zix Corporation, Dallas, TX, Healthy Email Advisory Board Member
• Joseph Scherger, MD , FSU College of Medicine, Tallahassee, FL, HealthyEmail Advisory Council
• Emily Freeman, VP American Insurance Group, Inc., SanFrancisco, CA, Healthy Email Advisory Council

B-ROLL INCLUDES

• Screen shots Healthyemail.org site, doctor's office footage, brochure shots

FOR TECHNICAL INFORMATION OR HARD COPY REQUESTS
PLEASE CALL: (212) 727-1742