Quote Of The Year

Timeless Quotes - Sadly The Late Paul Shetler - "Its not Your Health Record it's a Government Record Of Your Health Information"

or

H. L. Mencken - "For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong."

Thursday, April 28, 2016

The Macro View - General And Health News Relevant To E-Health And Health In General.

April 28  Edition
The macroeconomic stresses seem to have eased a little more with markets rising or stable around the world.
With Budget Night now May 3 we won’t have long to wait to see what is happening. The Budget now seems to now be very minimalist with any major reform seemingly off the table. It seems there is going to be some exciting political times until we get there!
Given it is only 1-2 weeks away I guess we just wait and watch. Is seems sin-taxes are also back on the agenda!
Interestingly we are now seeing any changes to Negative Gearing being ruled out and a new Dental Funding Scheme being announced. We also saw a lot of news related to the Big Banks with things becoming rather more political than makes sense.
You can expect many more leaks over the next week or so - and it is probable we will know most of the details well before the actual Budget Speech!
The biggest thing last week was a speech from Glenn Stevens - where he made it clear we are not out of the woods - just yet,

Reserve Bank governor Glenn Stevens warns that low rates come at high cost to retirees

By AM business editor Peter Ryan
The Reserve Bank governor Glenn Stevens has warned that today's world of ultra-low interest rates is putting increasing pressure on returns for superannuation funds.
Mr Stevens said record low interest rates are "a big problem" for savers and that many stand to be "disappointed" about the direction of their retirement nest eggs.
Speaking in New York, Mr Stevens told a conference that low yields for investors pose a problem for both defined benefits and accumulation funds, with the "whole set of assumptions" for retirement income plans is being called into question.
"Increasingly we are hearing commentary about the difficulty or impossibility of defined benefit pension plans making good on their promises with long term rates of return being so low," Mr Stevens said.
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Here is a summary of interesting things up until the end of last week:
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General Budget Issues.

Treasurer Scott Morrison reveals little 'integrity' as budget approaches

Date April 18, 2016 - 6:58AM

Jessica Irvine

Senior Writer

In a quiet courtyard of Parliament House, close to the Press Gallery, grows a magnificent maple tree that erupts annually in fiery autumnal splendour in the lead-up to the federal budget.
It's been nicknamed the "budget tree", and your scribe has been admiring it for more than a decade now on my annual pilgrimage to the federal budget lock-up.
But this year, my spies tell me, the budget tree is still green. Nary a tinge of colour, as this column went to print.
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Scott Morrison needs to lift taxes to pull the budget into shape

Date April 18, 2016 - 12:15AM
EDITORIAL
Scott Morrison has a regrettable tendency to resort to loud bluster and swollen rhetoric when he is questioned about the government's economic strategy. That makes it doubly difficult for those whose sorry task it is to disentangle the government's important intentions from Mr Morrison's near-incessant polemic.
Moody's Investors Service is one organisation that is trying to do just that, and it does not like what it is hearing. On Thursday, Moody's warned that unless the Turnbull government came up with measures to raise revenue in the budget, then government debt would continue to rise and that would put the nation's AAA credit rating at risk.
The ratings agency contends that unless the government lifts taxes, or other forms of revenue, it will miss its self-imposed deadline of 2020-21 for balancing the budget.
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Morrison (sort of) reveals the budget strategy: bracket creep

  • The Australian
  • April 18, 2016 7:49AM

Alan Kohler

Treasurer Scott Morrison laid out the government’s budget strategy the other day.
Morrison was a resounding success as immigration minister through the unusual, for a politician, tactic of saying nothing. As Treasurer, he feels the other extreme is the way to go.
In the midst of a frenzied, convoluted attempt to turn Moody’s criticism of Australia’s feeble budget efforts in recent years into an attack on Labor, Morrison explained his plan and gave a preview of the May budget.
“Revenue will rise to the long-run average of 24.1 per cent. On the current estimates, revenue is forecast to rise over the next three or four years. … our plan is to see revenue rises through growth and ensuring a better targeted tax system. So our revenue measures that we announce in the Budget and the redeployment of that revenue to easing the tax burden where you can foster investment is the way we believe that you can drive growth and jobs in this economy.”
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Australian Budget Talk: Experts Say Scott Morrison Should Lift Taxes For Good Budget

19 April, 2016 / By Kalyan Kumar / In Australia,Business,Financial
The upcoming Australian budget will risk Australia’s credit ratings if it fails to raise taxes and shore up revenue, warned rating agency Moody’s. The agency predicts that the credit rating will nosedive if the budget lacks substance. It called for concrete revenue-raising steps, including new taxation plans.
Moody’s said Malcolm Turnbull government is yet to show up tangible measures in revenue-yielding plans and warned that the government would be caught in a debt trap.  The current Triple A (AAA) credit rating of the country will be put at risk.
Prior to Moody’s caution, the Commonwealth Bank, NAB and J.P. Morgan also raised similar concerns, reports The Age.
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19 Apr 2016 - 8:44am

Labor criticises govt's post-budget ads

The federal opposition has criticised leaked advertising showing the government's budget will include changes to super and multinational tax.
Source:  AAP
19 Apr 2016 - 8:44 AM  UPDATED 25 MINS AGO
Labor has seized on leaked advertising highlighting changes to superannuation tax concessions and multinational tax arrangements due to be aired after the federal budget.
Sky News says it's seen the key statements of a script for the government's taxpayer-funded television and radio advertisements, which have already been filmed.
The statements include $16 billion in savings over the four years under changes to super and multinational tax.
Opposition finance spokesman Tony Burke says the post-budget ads are part of the coalition's re-election strategy because none of the measures will have been implemented before parliament is dissolved.
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Government refuses to comment on 'humiliating' leak of core budget details, ad campaign

By political reporter Tom Iggulden
The Government is refusing to comment on what Labor is calling a "humiliating" leak of core budget details.
Sky News last night revealed purported key points of a script for a radio and television ad campaign to be rolled out after the May 3 budget.
Presenter Paul Murray told viewers the ads would boast of $16 billion worth of budget savings over four years, including crackdowns on superannuation tax concessions and multinational tax avoidance.
"The Government doesn't respond to speculative reports," a spokesman for Treasurer Scott Morrison told the ABC.
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Federal budget 2016: Advertising 'leak' shows $16 billion in savings: report

Date April 19, 2016 - 8:56AM

Michael Koziol

National political reporter

Turnbull's winter election gamble

The ABCC legislation didn't pass the Senate so we're going to the polls on July 2 - that's a 75 day election campaign.
The Turnbull government will reportedly spruik $16 billion in savings over four years in the federal budget, as it prepares for an all-but-certain double dissolution election on July 2.
Sky News reported on Monday night that the government would pursue changes to superannuation concessions and multinational tax avoidance to reach the savings figure.
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Federal budget 2016: Coalition plans tougher crackdown on super to outflank Labor

Date April 20, 2016 - 5:04AM

Peter Martin

The Coalition is set to reveal on budget night, a superannuation tax plan that will rake in more money than Labor's will.
The Turnbull government is preparing to trump Labor in the budget by cracking down harder on high-income superannuation tax concessions to raise four times as much as the opposition's policy.
Labor has promised to cut the income threshold for more heavily taxing contributions from $300,000 to $250,000. The Coalition now plans to cut it to $180,000.
The change, to be unveiled on budget night, will tax more highly the super contributions of an extra 244,000 Australians and will net $2 billion a year, compared with Labor's $500 million a year.
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Federal budget 2016: Superannuation backlash might not stem savings

Date April 20, 2016 - 12:15AM

Sally Rose

Markets reporter

Government's big super plan

The Coalition is set to reveal on budget night, a superannuation tax plan that will rake in more money than Labor's will.
If the Turnbull government follows through with leaked plans to slash superannuation tax breaks for high income earners in the upcoming federal budget it will be a bold move that risks angering many of its supporters.
But it won't necessarily stop them pouring money into super, some analysts say.
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Federal budget 2016: Scott Morrison to give extra $120m to corporate regulator ASIC

Date April 19, 2016 - 11:04PM

James Massola

Chief political reporter

Turnbull confirms he wants July 2nd poll

There will be a double-dissolution election, says Malcolm Turnbull, and he intends holding it on July 2nd. Courtesy ABC News 24.
Treasurer Scott Morrison will announce at least $120 million in additional funding for corporate regulator ASIC as part of a suite of measures to be unveiled on Wednesday, after he and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull were challenged by the Coalition backbench on the need to crack down on bank behaviour.
The announcement will come a day after Mr Turnbull confirmed Australians will go to the polls in a double dissolution election to be held on July 2 and is designed to blunt the political impact of Labor's push for a banks royal commission.
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Turnbull Government expected to crack down on superannuation

April 20, 2016 8:16am
Charis Chang and AAPnews.com.au

Turnbull superannuation overhaul plan exposed

THE Turnbull government is ready to outdo Labor and will reportedly crack down harder on high-income superannuation tax concessions.
Superannuation has been a hot topic of debate with experts suggesting that loopholes in the system cost the Federal Budget about $30 billion a year in lost revenue.
Richard Denniss, from progressive think tank the Australia Institute, told news.com.au last year that the key issue was that rich people got lucrative tax concessions that were not offered to low-income earners.
“There’s a very clear problem at the moment: tax concessions go disproportionately to rich the wealthy. We could fix that and save the Budget a lot of money,” Mr Denniss said.
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Banks still haven't got the message that bad behaviour is not on

Date April 19, 2016 - 10:58PM

Ross Gittins

The Sydney Morning Herald's Economics Editor

The Federal Opposition tries to turn up the heat on the Government to hold a banking royal commission.
Is there any justification for a royal commission into the conduct of the banks? Is it just a political stunt? All royal commissions are called for political reasons and many are stunts, in the sense that their primary objective is just to bring particular issues into the public spotlight.
To me, the best justification for an inquiry into the banks is that they still don't seem to have got the message. They've been caught treating their customers badly, but so far they've shown little sign of contrition - sorry about the few bad apples, but I didn't know - and little willingness to make amends.
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Budget 2016: Malcolm Turnbull’s $10bn spree since coup

  • The Australian
  • April 22, 2016 12:00AM

David Uren

The budget will have to find savings to cover more than $10 billion of fresh spending since Malcolm Turnbull gained power last September, before being able to fund any election promises or new budget commitments.
Although Scott Morrison has declared that his main goal in the lead-up to the May 3 budget is stopping new spending, the government has made as many new commitments in the seven months since the change of leadership as were contained in last year’s budget.
The Treasurer has made a target of reducing government spending from the 25.9 per cent of GDP reported in the mid-year budget update and has promised to cover the cost of new spending with fresh savings measures.
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  • Apr 22 2016 at 12:15 AM

Tricks and fudges to look out for in budget 2016

by Richard Holden
Policies in the federal budget, to be handed down on May 3, will affect the personal finances of households around the country. It will also set the scene for much of the upcoming election battle.
Amid a sea of statistics, slogans, and spin, what are the key takeaways for you? Here's what to look for on May 3.

Forecasts

Both government revenue and expenditure going forward depend on macroeconomic factors. Expenditures depend importantly on inflation, since many welfare and other benefits, as well as payments to government employees, are inflation indexed. On the revenue side, tax receipts depend on nominal gross domestic product growth, and the composition of it, which determines who is in which tax bracket.
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Federal budget 2016: We need more tax

Date April 20, 2016 - 1:56PM

Peter Martin

Economics Editor, The Age

Another leak for team Turnbull?

If the leak is genuine, the post-budget advertisement says the government will save the budget $16 billion over four years. Vision Sky News & ABC 24.
Never before has a budget advertisement been prepared ahead of the budget itself. In fact, rarely before has a budget needed an advertisement.
The leaked script read on Sky News is a bit like something for Seinfeld in that it is a script about nothing. All previous budget advertising campaigns have been about something specific, such as small-business tax breaks.
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Federal Budget set to deliver relief to middle-income wage earners

April 22, 2016 9:24pm
ELLEN WHINNETT Herald Sun
PERSONAL income tax cuts will be included in the Federal Budget, with middle-income wage earners winning tax relief.
The Herald Sun can reveal those earning slightly more than $80,000 will get a tax cut, as the Turnbull Government tries to relieve the burden of bracket creep on middle-income earners.
The beneficiaries will be those paying 37c in the dollar tax because they are earning more than $80,000 a year, or who are due to go up into that tax bracket.
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Federal election 2016: Home ownership an election issue as Government takes reform off table

April 24, 2016 4:30am
Samantha Maiden EXCLUSIVE Herald Sun
THE Turnbull government has officially placed negative gearing reforms off-limits in the Budget, which will make home ownership the key election battleground.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull will announce the Budget policy today in response to Labor proposals to remove negative gearing on existing properties from 2017.
Warning a Labor election victory would drive up rents and reduce home values, Mr Turnbull said families face a clear choice at the election.
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Health Budget Issues.

Bulk billing incentives for pathologists to be scrapped on day before election, Sussan Ley says

By political reporter Caitlyn Gribbin
Federal Health Minister Sussan Ley says she will not give into a "scare campaign" against a policy to scrap bulk billing incentives for pathologists — even if the plan is due to come into effect the day before the July 2 election.
The Opposition and pathologists are fighting against the Federal Government's policy to cut bonus payments it offers for pathology services to bulk bill.
But Ms Ley looks set to push on with the changes, despite them being flagged to kick in on July 1.
"The Government's made announcements and we'll stick with those announcements," Ms Ley said.
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Malcolm Turnbull to announce revamp of dental policy in first budget

April 23, 2016 12:00am
Sue Dunlevy National Health Reporter News Corp Australia Network
EXCLUSIVE
Every Australian child will get government-subsidised dental care including braces under a major revamp of dental policy to be announced in Malcolm Turnbull’s first budget.
The current means tested Child Dental Scheme (CDBS) which provided care to three million kids will be axed and replaced by a scheme providing dental cover for every child — 5.3 million kids.
The current $1,000 cap on government funded dental care will be scrapped under the new Child and Adult Public Dental Scheme (caPDS) scheme that will even pay for braces, crowns and implants if they are clinically necessary rather than cosmetic.
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Budget 2016: healthcare waste costs $20bn a year

  • The Australian
  • April 23, 2016 12:00AM

Adam Creighton

Sarah-Jane Tasker

Australians are forking out at least $20 billion a year in higher taxes and insurance premiums to cover entrenched waste and anti-competitive practices in the healthcare sector — equivalent to extending the GST to fresh food, health and education.
As the government and Labor debate proposals to increase tax to plug the $38bn budget deficit, health insurance chiefs and the head of the government’s Health Safety and Quality Commission, Debora Picone, have told The Australian improving health ­efficiency could knock 15 per cent off the $150bn national health bill.
“Falling-off-a-log type reforms could save that amount every year with no reduction in actual outcomes,” said Australian Unity chief executive Rohan Mead, pointing to overservicing and lack of competition among hospitals and doctors.
Health insurer NIB chief Mark Fitzgibbon said attacking the “low hanging fruit” of waste in the system — ensuring prices for devices on the prostheses list is the same for private and public hospitals — would mean up to a 4.5 per cent drop in insurance premiums.
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Budget 2016: super tax reform pitched at battlers

  • The Australian
  • April 23, 2016 12:00AM

David Crowe

The Turnbull government is preparing to blunt Labor’s pitch to ordinary workers by preparing superannuation reforms in the May 3 budget that help those on low incomes at the expense of those earning more than $180,000 a year.
Malcolm Turnbull and Scott Morrison are turning their sights on the barriers facing the “battlers”, as part of a package that will ensure there are winners as well as losers from the super tax overhaul.
The move comes as a new report from Industry Super Australia highlights the impact on average workers from the existing super rules, which give wealthier Australians more than six times the tax breaks on their retirement savings.
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Universal health care must not penalise the sick

22nd Apr 2016 4:52 PM
Caroline Hutchinson
IS IT just me or is everyone looking for a good excuse to avoid a pap smear?
I was a kid when Medicare was introduced so it is the only system I have ever known.
Being the robust country girl I am, I haven’t been a great burden on the health system but I’ve been the grateful recipient of three healthy babies and the very relieved young wife of a cancer survivor.
The times I have needed the system most were the times I could afford it least.
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Health Insurance Issues.

Doctors’ fees ‘real villain’ for health insurance funds

  • The Australian
  • April 18, 2016 12:00AM

Sean Parnell

Health funds would have more say over the specialists members are referred to as well as the ­hospitals to which they are ­admitted under a proposal from a former insurance industry regulator concerned at unrestrained doctors’ bills.
Shaun Gath, who was chief executive of the Private Health Insurance Administration Council for seven years, believes competition has failed to keep costs down and that the Constitution prevents governments dealing with the “real villain” of doctors’ fees and charges.
“In the 1946 referendum, we gave the parliament power to make a range of social security payments, including hospital and medical benefits,” Mr Gath writes in The Australian today.
“But the section also stops the parliament from controlling what doctors charge. So one step in that direction and it’s off to the High Court.”
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Private health insurance may be broken, but it can be fixed

  • Shaun Gath
  • The Australian
  • April 18, 2016 12:00AM
The three day moral panic that passes for serious debate around our private health insurance system has come and gone again. Premium increases can do that to you. And obviously getting hit up for an extra 5, 6, or 7 per cent is ­nobody’s idea of fun.
Most of the media advice, by design, has a short shelf life. The issue will be back next year and the same games will play all over again.
So, here’s a crazy idea … what if we actually did something to try and fix the problem?
But before rushing off, let’s at least give private health insurance its due. It’s been a pillar of our health system for over 150 years. Over that time lot of people in real need have been helped. That remains true today.
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  • Apr 21 2016 at 12:15 AM
  • Updated Apr 21 2016 at 12:15 AM

Can Medibank's health deliver free-kick for Drummond?

If Medibank's loyalists and share price are to be believed, one of Craig Drummond's first acts as chief executive at Medibank Private will be an earnings upgrade.
In January the private health insurer upgraded its 2015-16 health insurance profit by $100 million to more than $470 million due to weak claims growth, tougher hospital contracting, and an ongoing crackdown on improper claims.
Medibank said at the time that its targets "anticipate that the second operating half profit will be lower than the first half due to increased marketing and brand investment, and some moderation of the recent slowdown in the growth of hospital utilisation rates".
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Surgeon cracks down on NIB’s low payments

April 24, 20167:29am
Sue Dunlevy News Corp Australia Network
EXCLUSIVE.
Australia’s fourth largest health fund NIB pays doctors so little a surgeon is urging his patients to switch their cover because he can no longer afford to take part in its gap cover scheme.
NIB pays just $2,014 for knee replacement surgery, 40 per cent less than the AMA fee of $3,600.
Dr Hardeep Salaria has written to his patients warning them NIB is “paying significantly less to doctors under the Gap Cover arrangements than almost all other funds”.
And he is urging them to choose another health fund which is not for profit such as HCF or one of the AHSA funds.
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Health is also clearly still under review as far as its budget is concerned with still a few reviews underway and some changes in key strategic directions. Lots to keep up with here with all the various pre-budget kites are still being flown - although narrowing it seems to be largely focussed on Super! Enjoy. Less than two weeks to the Budget!
David.

Wednesday, April 27, 2016

I Have Seen Some Spin In My Time But This Takes The Biscuit! NEHTA Was An Obstacle, to Not A Supporter of, Progress In Australian E-Health.

This release appeared late last week:

NEHTA Board welcomes the Australian Digital Health Agency and pays tribute to its outgoing CEO Mr Peter Fleming

Created on Thursday, 21 April 2016
The Chair of the Board of the National E-Health Transition Authority (NEHTA) Dr Steve Hambleton has welcomed the news that the disallowance period for the Australian Digital Health Agency (the Agency) had passed and looks forward to the next stage, the transition to the Agency.
"It is with much enthusiasm that I report that digital health is alive and well with confirmation that The Agency has the support of the Parliament and will be fully operational by 1 July 2016," Dr Hambleton said.
This announcement comes just three weeks after the Turnbull Government announced its support for the establishment of 'Health Care Homes' in General Practices that will rely on the My Health Record and digital communication as an enabler to provide personalised comprehensive care and enhance health system integration.
Dr Hambleton paid tribute on behalf of the Board to NEHTA's outgoing CEO Mr Peter Fleming whose stewardship has helped NEHTA deliver on the objectives set for it on its formation 11 years ago.  Mr Fleming will pass on responsibility to a collaborative joint transition team for the final two months of the handover of NEHTA's operations to the Agency.
Mr Fleming, who has been NEHTA's CEO since 2008, said that he was proud to be at the helm of NEHTA as it had delivered the cornerstone eHealth foundations in accordance with its charter.
"This has made it possible to deliver the national My Health Record system to achieve the vision set by the Australian health ministers 15 years ago." Mr Fleming said.
He went on to say, "I am extremely proud of the many key employees and contractors to NEHTA that have been involved over the years, in designing and delivering the eHealth foundations that Australia now relies on. All of these dedicated people deserve to be proud of their achievements, which will provide health benefits to the current and future generations."
"NEHTA was tasked to 'develop the standards and provide and manage the development of infrastructure, software and systems required to support connectivity and interoperability of electronic health information systems across Australia' and it has achieved that," said Dr Hambleton.
This includes development and implementation of the key building blocks for a national eHealth system including standards and specifications; identity management; security and authentication; disease and medicines terminology; secure messaging; clinical safety assessment; conformance and compliance management; and procurement and supply chain solutions.
"These are the foundations of eHealth, and they are the envy of many of our international neighbours. There are very few countries in the world that have been able to transition to a uniform national 'eHealth rail gauge'." Dr Hambleton said.
NEHTA's work has also laid the foundations that will be progressed by the Agency to embrace the innovation agenda set by the Turnbull government.
"It is expected that there will be many more innovative ideas that will leverage those foundations and assist Australia to deliver better health outcomes and a much more engaged population," Dr Hambleton said.
Here is the link:
I have to disagree with this release. I believe NEHTA has performed very badly, delivered unwanted and unsuccessful systems as well as thousands of pages of unused and unusable specifications.
Given the $1 Billion or more spent on NEHTA it is hard to see any appreciable value that has been delivered.
There is no reason to take my word for this: On page 44 of the Royle Review of the PCEHR we read the following:

“Review Findings

The review has heard from multiple medical industry associations and software providers. A strong theme of constraints being imposed on the industry due to the centralist approach taken with the PCEHR, has been shared.

 A perceived centralist approach, led by NEHTA and the Federal Department of Health has been identified as reducing confidence of the private sector to invest in product development and evolution, reducing the willingness to collaborate given multiple comments that information was often shared with NEHTA with little received in return.”

Enough said. NEHTA designed the unused PCEHR and was seen as having damaged the e-Health industry overall - rather than having been a force for good.
I , for one, and thrilled to see it go. We can only hope the ADHA turns out to be a lot better!
The press release attempts a hagiography of a virtually total failure. That the PR is funded by public money is really just hopeless. As a small consolation I now know the dreadful rubbish that was an un-consultative and self obsessed organisation that threatened to sue me for telling the truth are now out of a job. I sure won't miss it! It took 11 years but finally the stupid has been left to disappear!

Also good to see all those rubbish initiatives vanish - such as ehealthcentral. Just paid nonsense which still sits there as a monument to the hubis of NEHTA and DoH, and what you can get when you are spending government money. You guys need to get out more!

As my daughter would say to their demise, Yea!!!

Good riddance NEHTA and all the senior staff who determined its pathetic, confrontational and failed approach. I hope having been part of NEHTA will mean you spend much time thinking about how much better it could have been!

Of course the obvious issue going forward is just how different the new ADHA will be? Right now it is feeling eerily similar to the old NEHTA and to be a tooth less tiger being told just what to do by DoH. That certainly needs to change! 

David.

Tuesday, April 26, 2016

Weekly Australian Health IT Links – 26th April, 2016.

Here are a few I have come across the last week or so.
Note: Each link is followed by a title and a few paragraphs. For the full article click on the link above title of the article. Note also that full access to some links may require site registration or subscription payment.

General Comment

A big week with the Board for the Australian Digital Health Authority being announced and NEHTA slipping off down the River Styx - and totally unmourned by yours truly!
Other than this the echo of the letters to the dead continued and all sorts of other spin around the myHR also continuing.
Some interesting private sector initiatives also came to light this week. Enjoy the browse.
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RACGP pounces amid embarrassing e-health gaffe

19 April 2016
THE RACGP has leapt on embarrassing revelations that e-health records have been set up for dead Australians to repeat its plea for the government to reconsider parts of the program affecting GPs.
The Department of Human Services has apologised after revelations that My Health records have been mistakenly set up for a "small number" of deceased people.
Media reports over the weekend quoted several people who had received letters informing them that records were being established for relatives who had died.
The department says the error happened because it had not been notified about deaths prior to letters being sent out.
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Concern over MyHealth Records after dead people signed up

Paul Smith | 19 April, 2016 | 
Revelations that dead people are being signed up to the MyHealth Record system has sparked RACGP warnings that the system is flawed.
The Department of Human Services has admitted it has sent letters to people who were deceased, telling them they would be automatically signed up to the system under a new trial.
Officials said the letters were mistakenly issued because the department did not have a death date recorded against the patients' records.
Alison McLaren told News Limited that her family got a letter telling them that her grandmother, Muriel Stratton, who had passed away 20 years ago, would get her own MyHealth Record.
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Digital health records created for dead people

Ilsa Cunningham
April 22, 2016, 2:25 p.m.
Not good enough: Alison McLaren with Susan Templeman and the letter advising a digital health record had been created for her nanna who died 20 years ago.
Two Blue Mountains families got the shock of their lives when they received a letter from the federal health department advising a digital health record had been created for their loved ones who had died more than 20 years ago.
Mountains residents are among the first to trial My Health Record which is an online summary of a person’s health information, a system being created at a cost of $485 million over three years.
Alison McLaren’s nanna Muriel Stratton died 20 years ago, and the letter arrived at her mum Lyn McLaren’s Winmalee home.
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Australian Medical Association concerned about online health service trial proposed by Chinese company for Prospect Council

April 17, 201610:56pm
James Hetherington The Advertiser
THE Australian Medical Association fears patients would use online health services in preference to their local GP if a trial proposed by a Chinese company is approved by Prospect Council.
Prospect Mayor David O’Loughlin discussed the deal with executives from Hisense during a trade mission to Shandong this month.
He said the company, which is the third-largest TV manufacturer in the world, was keen to trial the service in Prospect because of the district’s high-speed fibre internet connections.
The AMA is concerned about the potential deal and says patients should seek advice from their GP instead of overseas doctors.
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Transforming Health boss Vickie Kaminski ready for intense political scrutiny of change agenda

The overseas recruit now in change of implementing major changes to South Australia's public health system says the medical arena cannot avoid intense political scrutiny.
Vickie Kaminski quit her last job in Canada because the Alberta health system was unable to achieve planned changes due to the politics involved, but now she has taken on the role as chief transformation manager for SA Health.
Ms Kaminski told 891 ABC Adelaide her more than three decades of healthcare and management experience would help South Australia achieve the changes outlined in the State Labor Government policy known as Transforming Health.
"I don't think we'll ever find a place where healthcare doesn't have high politics and high scrutiny because we are often 40 per cent of the budget, so politicians are going to want to know what's going on," she said.
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Concern over plan to connect patients with overseas GPs

19 April 2016
THE AMA is concerned that an online global health service proposed by a South Australian council could fragment care and potentially expose its users to medical errors by overseas doctors.
Mayor of the Adelaide suburb of Prospect, David O’Loughlin, has discussed a deal with executives from Chinese tech firm Hisense to trial a service that will allow locals to access health practitioners both in and out of the country.
It would also allow people overseas to access healthcare from Prospect GPs.
Mr O’Loughlin says there is a huge market for such a service, and Hisense is keen to partner with Prospect because of the district’s blanket high-speed fibre internet connections.
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Pilgrim warns data de-identification is 'rocket science'

Privacy holy grail elusive in its execution.

By Paris Cowan
Apr 20 2016 11:25AM
Information commissioner Timothy Pilgrim has warned that effective data de-identification remains an elusive goal in the "data space race" consuming Australia’s enterprises.
He told the business community he was willing to consider de-identified data outside of the strict protection demands of the Privacy Act, but only when the ID stripping process meets the highest standards.
The OAIC is set to clarify these standards in upcoming draft guidance.
In a blog post written in the lead up to his CeBIT address in two weeks, Pilgrim reiterated the risks posed by undercooked de-identification.
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Health department spruiks MyHealth Records

Paul Smith | 21 April, 2016 | 
GPs are the only specialists getting paid incentives to use the MyHealth Record system because they are “key to the wellbeing of all Australians”, the Department of Health has declared.
In two weeks' time, GP clinics will have to upload a fixed number of shared health summaries to the billion-dollar system in order to claim e-health Practice Incentive Program payments.
Under the change, it will be necessary for the average full-time-equivalent GP to upload around five health summaries a quarter.
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NEHTA Board welcomes the Australian Digital Health Agency and pays tribute to its outgoing CEO Mr Peter Fleming

Created on Thursday, 21 April 2016
The Chair of the Board of the National E-Health Transition Authority (NEHTA) Dr Steve Hambleton has welcomed the news that the disallowance period for the Australian Digital Health Agency (the Agency) had passed and looks forward to the next stage, the transition to the Agency.
"It is with much enthusiasm that I report that digital health is alive and well with confirmation that The Agency has the support of the Parliament and will be fully operational by 1 July 2016," Dr Hambleton said.
This announcement comes just three weeks after the Turnbull Government announced its support for the establishment of 'Health Care Homes' in General Practices that will rely on the My Health Record and digital communication as an enabler to provide personalised comprehensive care and enhance health system integration.
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Govt names new e-health leadership

Preparing for the abolition of NeHTA.

By Paris Cowan
Apr 22 2016 11:51AM
The federal government has named the 11 board members set to steer its new e-health directive as it prepares to establish the Australian Digital Health Agency in place of the soon-to-be-abolished NeHTA.
The ADHA will lead the Commonwealth’s revised approach to electronic healthcare, which has been driven by the recommendations of the 2013 Royle review into the failings of the personally controlled electronic health record (PCEHR).
That review (pdf) found that the agency in charge of implementing the government’s e-health policy, the National e-Health Transition Authority, “does not have the confidence of the industry or audience that it is attempting to represent”.
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Data access inquiry casts the net far too wide

April 18, 2016 11.14am AEST
David Glance
Director of UWA Centre for Software Practice, University of Western Australia
The Australian Productivity Commission has launched a public inquiry into access and use of public and private data.
The agenda of the inquiry is ambitious in both its timescale and its scope. So much so that it risks failing to achieve anything meaningful.
The inquiry will cover:
  1. Increasing the availability of public and private data sets to others in the public and private sectors
  2. Improving individuals’ access to data that relates to themselves
  3. Standards for the collection, sharing and release of public and private data
  4. Issues around privacy, confidentiality and data security of access

The promise of data

At the heart of the inquiry is the desire to uncover the range and extent of benefits coming out of the increased provision, access and use of this data. These benefits could be anything from better health and lives for Australians to increased productivity and opportunities for private and public organisations.
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Coroner calls for real-time drug monitoring system after death of Hampton park man

April 20, 2016 2:05pm
Megan Bailey Berwick Leader
THE death of a Hampton Park man has sparked calls for the Victorian government to adopt a real-time reporting prescription monitoring system to combat ‘doctor shopping’.
Frank Edward Frood, who died in 2012 at age 47, used benzodiazepines and methadone in place of heroin, which he had been addicted to for 20 years.
As well as having bipolar disorder he also had severe asthma and had a chest infection before he died.
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18 April, 2016

One hack can pretty much bring your practice to its knees

Hacked Healthcare data sells at a premium so it’s on the rise. But losing your data is your first problem. Then there’s the money, the downtime, the lost records and…the lost patients.
Cyber security is like going to the dentist: expensive and unpleasant, but necessary.
Cyber security in health is underinvested and underappreciated, and a spate of hospital attacks this year have drawn attention to the value that healthcare information holds, security experts say.
“The records that GPs keep of seemingly mundane information, like names, addresses, Medicare information, are really valuable to criminals,” said Robert Merkel, a lecturer in software engineering at Monash University.
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Government prepares to unveil $231.1m cyber security strategy

Details of funding revealed ahead of strategy’s release later today
Rohan Pearce (Computerworld) 21 April, 2016 08:45
The government will today publicly release its long-awaited cyber security strategy. The strategy, details of which will be released at midday, includes initiatives worth $233.1 million over four years.
That funding will include $38.8 million to establish a new facility for the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) to boost its growth and increase opportunities for partnerships with the private sector.
The government will look to significantly increase the capabilities of CERT Australia through a $21.5 million funding boost as well as $10 million for awareness raising programs and $2 million for a program focussed on non-government partners.
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Malcolm Turnbull launches $230m cyber security strategy

  • The Australian
  • April 21, 2016 1:01PM

Supratim Adhikari

E-Safety Commissioner Alastair MacGibbon has been named Malcolm Turnbull’s adviser on cyber security.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has appointed Children’s eSafety Commissioner Alastair MacGibbon as his special adviser on cyber security and urged Australian businesses to break down the culture of denial around cyber breaches.
Mr Turnbull made the announcement as he officially launched the government’s Cyber Security Strategy, adding that collaboration between the public and private sector is crucial in tackling the perils of cybercrime.
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My Health Record: eLearning course now available!

Wednesday, 20 April 2016

The online training is a combination of existing and new material and will continue to be updated, incorporating feedback from users as the My Health Record system continues to evolve.

The Department of Health has released an eLearning course to support healthcare providers wanting to use the My Health Record.
This online training material provides self-paced learning and aims to allow healthcare providers to become familiar with, and confident in using, today’s My Health Record system.   
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RACGP reiterates calls for Government to re-think suggested ePIP model

18 April 2016
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) today repeated its call for the Federal Government to urgently revisit the proposed changes to the Practice Incentives Program (PIP) eHealth Incentive (ePIP) that would establish mandatory requirements for the uploading of clinical documents to My Health Record.
“In light of the revelations this weekend about incorrect records, I repeat my call for the Government to reconsider its position,” RACGP President Dr Frank R Jones said.
In November, Dr Jones wrote to Health Minister Sussan Ley suggesting the changes were “misaligned, ill-timed, superficial, will not support meaningful use, and – as a result – will not improve patient care and safety”.
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Ray & Lorraine's story

Ray & Lorraine Gardner, North Richmond
A decade of travelling vast distances and rugged terrain both in Australia and overseas has taught Ray & Lorraine Gardner to be prepared. Before setting off, their motorhome is checked for mechanical issues, food and water supplies are stocked, their phones are charged and their My Health Record information is up to date. 
The retired couple from North Richmond signed up for the Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record (PCEHR) as it was then known in 2012. Since then, they have shared the record with their local GP, Dr Michael Crampton, so he can add health information that can assist GPs or healthcare professionals in other states. 
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Growing ‘lack of trust’, concerns over privacy by Internet users

Consumers are increasingly worried about their online privacy and security, especially when it comes to ‎how their personal data is handled by private corporations and governments, according to a newly published global study commissioned by the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI).
The study, conducted by global research company Ipsos, of 24,143 Internet users across a number of countries, found that a majority of global citizens (83%) believe that there need to be new rules about how companies, governments and other users use personal data.
 Released on Monday at the United Nations Conference on Trade & Development E-Commerce Week in Geneva, the study also found that a strong majority (85%) of those surveyed also believed that their governments should work closely with other governments and organisations to make the Internet more safe and secure.
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Telstra Health director Kelsey says wi-fi must be free

Edwin Mitson Tuesday April 19, 2016 1
Tim Kelsey, strategy and commercial director of Telstra Health, told a conference in Wellington that wi-fi must be free as a public utility to ensure everyone can reap the benefits of digital health-care changes.
Speaking at the Powering Up Our Future event, Kelsey conceded it was a "ridiculous" thing for someone working for a telecommunications company to say. But he told his audience that "somehow or other we need to come to a new accommodation where wi-fi is free as a public utility so that all parts of the community are respected with access to these services. The future of health care I think requires equity of access to wi-fi as a matter of course iso that not just specific services can be accessed but more broadly people who can't have access to information get it."
Mr Kelsey is a former director of NHS England, which spearheaded access to data under the 2010-2015 coalition government in the UK. He took up his role with Telstra Health at the start of the year. The Australian telecommunications giant aims to turn its health division into a billion dollar business by 2020 and has been buying up small e-health providers to generate growth. In March last year, Telstra Health bought Dr. Foster, the health-care analytics company Kelsey founded in 2000.
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  • Updated Apr 18 2016 at 9:06 AM

ResApp taps investors in $10m placement

ResApp Health has kicked off a placement to raise at least $10 million, according to a term sheet sent to investors. 
The digital healthcare company has priced the offer at 20¢ a share in a raising being managed by Jett Capital Advisors. Firm bids are being called for by 6pm AEST.
The placement price represents a discount to the 24.5¢ the stock last traded at on Friday.
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Compumedics Ltd secures two major contracts worth $1.8M

Tuesday, April 19, 2016 by Proactive Investors
Compumedics Ltd (ASX:CMP) has secured two major contracts to supply both its sleep and neuro diagnostic equipment to US and Sydney based hospitals.
The $1.125 million and $700,000 contracts result in a record sales week for the company.
The $1.125 million contract is to university hospital in the US state of Wisconsin and the $700,000 contract is to supply Sydney's Westmead Children's Hospital.
The new contracts re-enforce Compumedics' strategy to expand its core business in major global medical devices markets.
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Labor would bring on data breach-notification laws 'as soon as practicable'

Under a Shorten Labor government, Australia may finally receive data breach-notification laws.
By Chris Duckett | April 22, 2016 -- 06:28 GMT (16:28 AEST) | Topic: Security
Should Labor win the impending July 2 election, Shadow Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus has said the incoming government would look to get the stalled data breach-notification laws passed with support from the conservative parties.
"Mandatory data breach legislation was a Labor commitment, and it is one that we maintain," Dreyfus told ZDNet.
"If elected, a Labor government would once again bring forward the legislation as soon as practicable, with the expectation of bipartisan support."
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Australia number one target for ransomware attacks in the Southern Hemisphere

April 18, 2016
Symantec’s (Nasdaq: SYMC) Internet Security Threat Report (ISTR), Volume 21, reveals an organisational shift by cybercriminals: They are establishing professional businesses and adopting corporate best practices in order to increase the efficiency of their attacks against enterprises and consumers. This new class of professional cybercriminal spans the ecosystem of attackers, extends the reach of enterprise and consumer threats, and fuels the growth of online crime.
“Advanced criminal attack groups now mirror the skill sets of nation-state attackers. They have well resourced and highly-skilled technical staff that operate during normal business hours – they even take weekends and holidays off”, said Kevin Haley, director, Symantec Security Response. “We are even seeing low-level criminal attackers create call centre operations to increase the impact of their scams”.
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All the bottom-line action

April 18, 2016
Orion Health signs largest Queensland Health Service
Orion Health (OHE:NZX/ASX) has signed an agreement with Metro North, the largest health service in the Australian state of Queensland, to deliver its ground-breaking Referrals Management platform. Metro North Hospital and Health Service serves over 900,000 people, and employs more than 16,000 staff in five hospitals and eight community health centres, along with oral and mental health facilities. The Referrals Management platform will enable healthcare professionals to submit, track and manage patient referrals as the individual moves from home to hospital to community care.
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Thousands of students stranded without enrolment as TAFE chaos continues

Date April 23, 2016 - 8:25PM

Eryk Bagshaw

Education Reporter

Up to 2000 students at TAFE's Sydney Institute have not been enrolled because of continuous problems with the NSW government's $531 million bungled IT system, teachers say. 
There have been delays in students' ability to borrow library books, log on to computers and access on-campus facilities such as printers because of the systems failures halfway through the teaching semester.
A leaked email chain to TAFE's new managing director Jon Black also reveals that students who graduated last year after spending thousands of dollars on their education have been unable to receive their diplomas because of the ongoing glitches. 
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Enjoy!
David.

Monday, April 25, 2016

The APF Identifies A Major Privacy Gap In The myHR. Another Reason To Stay Away I Believe.

This press release appeared a day or so ago. It is republished with permission.
April 21 2016
—Media Release—

Government’s My Health Record, a Privacy Disaster


The Australian Privacy Foundation today said that Federal Government’s My Health Record system is a privacy disaster waiting to happen. Its biggest weakness is the Medicare Call Centre with its many operators, all with potential access to My Health Record data.
In 2011 the government promised a “clear and robust framework” for the Health Records Call Centres. Five years later there are no rules or procedures in place, the necessary infrastructure or a robust framework of privacy protection.
"This total failure to deliver on its promise and put in place much needed protections exposes patients to curious Call Centre operators whose prying and spying are unlikely to be detected" said Dr Bernard Robertson-Dunn, chair of the Australian Privacy Foundation’s health committee. “This will get even worse if everyone is forced to have a My Health Record, which the Government is trying to do with its opt-out initiative.
"The Government's negligence is breathtaking considering the privacy of Call Centre access to your health data" he said.
Call Centre operators have unlimited access to patient health records to do their jobs; there has been nothing done to properly and adequately protect patient data from misuse by these operators, whether intentional or accidental.
“Health Information is highly attractive to criminals and hackers. This is a serious threat not only to patients but to Call Centre operators themselves who could potentially be pressured by outsiders to reveal health data on targeted individuals.” said Dr Robertson-Dunn.
“Prevention is better than cure. Relying on criminal and civil penalties will not protect privacy. It will only punish breaches, where they are detected.
"Acknowledging the privacy and security flaws, and fixing them all, must be the priority. The My Health Record is not safe to use as it stands, especially with the dangerous ‘Opt Out’ model creating records without prior consent." said Dr Robertson-Dunn.
With such poor privacy protections in place the Australian Privacy Foundation calls on the Australian Government to immediately stop the opt-out registration trials.
It should seriously reconsider the enormous privacy risks of its Call Centre and look at alternative designs that do not require such a potentially intrusive capability. If that means no public access, then so be it.
Dr Robertson-Dunn also said “Australians need to be aware that that the system has other privacy threatening features such as that it is impossible to cancel or remove your record. You can only inactivate it.
“Unfortunately the My Health Records System is like Hotel California ‘You can check out any time, but you can never leave’ he said.
Media Contact:
Dr Bernard Robertson-Dunn
Australian Privacy Foundation
Chair Health Committee
Bernard.Robertson-Dunn@privacy.org.au
APF website: https://www.privacy.org.au/
For detailed information on the My Health Record Call Centre debacle go to: https://www.privacy.org.au/Campaigns/MyHR/callcentre.html
For a rundown on all the features of the My Health Record the government doesn't speak of see: https://www.privacy.org.au/Campaigns/MyHR/info.html
 ------ End Release
Here is the link:
The release almost says it all - but just does not describe in enough detail the risk associated with staff having system admin level access to a huge data-base of personal sensitive information.
We have all seen stories of the clinical staff browsing the health records of celebrities and of staff stealing health credentials and then committing fraud. Of course the behaviour was not ethical or legal but it still happened and it is likely it will here to.
My advice, if you value your privacy, is to stay well away and certainly do not allow any personally sensitive information to be stored in this system.
David.

Sunday, April 24, 2016

Wishing Everyone A Reflective And Meaningful ANZAC Day

Having a First World War Military Cross winner and a Second World War RAF flyer in my immediate family this day reminds me how lucky most of us in this generation are to have been not to have been caught in large scale wars.

Those who have served Australia in all our wars have my greatest admiration and respect and I hope the day is observed as they would like.

Back tomorrow.

David.

AusHealthIT Poll Number 317 – Results – 24th April, 2016.

Here are the results of the poll.

Should The Private Sector And Academia Have Much Greater Input To e-Health Strategy And Policy Setting Than At Present?

Yes 99% (160)

No 1% (1)

I Have No Idea 1% (1)

Total votes: 162

There clearly needs a great deal more work on consultation in the strategy development!

The most clear cut vote ever!

Great turnout of votes as well!

Again, many, many thanks to all those that voted!

David.