Electronic Medical Records: A Case of Better Healthcare or an Invasion of Privacy?

Electronic medical records may save many lives and slash the cost of healthcare, but there's also a sinister risk that personal medical histories may land in the wrong hands. With the amended Healthcare Identifiers bills now passed by the Australian parliament, privacy advocates continue to air concerns, including their alarm at the suggestion that Google – already the subject of a Federal Police privacy investigation – could one day be the keeper of everyone's health info. Legal experts claim the new laws are fundamentally flawed. It's important to get the rules right first time, they say, because once the information escapes, there's no chance of a recall.