Certain healthcare providers will be required to upload certain information to My Health Record ... the specifics are yet to be decided. But it seems GPs are in the clear for now.
Some healthcare providers will be required by law to upload documents to My Health Record. The who, the what and the when are yet to be determined, but the RACGP says there aren’t plans to include GPs.
Yesterday, the government passed the Health Legislation Amendment (Modernizing My Health Record – Sharing by Default) Bill 2024.
The bill itself is light on specifics, but it will require some healthcare professionals to upload specified information to My Health Record.
Civil penalties will apply to those who do not comply.
While “not designed to be punitive”, the bill “will provide the powers necessary to ensure compliance with the requirement to upload”, health minister Mark Butler said during the bill’s second reading.
The details of which professionals will be required to upload what material will be outlined in a separate legislative rule that will be developed now that the bill has passed.
The Department of Health and Aged Care did not answer The Medical Republic’s queries about a timeline for the development and implementation of the rule by publication deadline.
The government has specified that the initial targets will be pathology and diagnostic imaging services, but it does leave room for this to be expanded to other services tied to Medicare – including general practice.
The AMA previously told TMR that it had been assured that GPs would not be included in the near future.
Speaking to TMR, chair of the RACGP’s expert committee on practice technology Dr Rob Hosking said that the college was privy to the same information and that any change would have to be made in consultation with the profession.
“It’s not something we are concerned about,” he said.
Dr Hosking said there were “enormous potential benefits” of the new legislation for GPs and patients.
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“We, as GPs, spend a large amount of our time, or our reception staff spend a lot of time, ringing around various pathology or imaging services to try and get information on tests that have been done ordered elsewhere, ordered in emergency departments,” he said.
“The tests have been done, but we haven’t been copied into the results.”
Dr Hosking said he expected there may be more pressure on GPs from their patients to upload to MHR if the platform is more widely advertised and used.
He said there was an unrealistic expectation that there were many types of information that GPs could upload to MHR.
In reality, it is limited to shared health summaries – which list data like allergies, medication, diagnoses and immunisations – and event summaries, such as consultations of importance, which are most useful for patients changing GPs.
GPs can also help patients upload advanced care directives.
Dr Hosking said there were ongoing discussions among the Australian Digital Health Agency’s clinical reference group around what information will be useful and safe to have immediate access to as a patient.
Assistant secretary for DoHAC Simon Cleverley said that while there was “a lot more work to be done” on implementation, the department would engage with stakeholders throughout the upcoming phases.
“These changes will shift Australia’s consumer-controlled My Health Record system from a system where health information is shared to consumers ‘by exception’ to a system where health information is shared ‘by default’ – beginning with pathology and diagnostic imaging reports,” he wrote on LinkedIn.
“This will benefit all 24 million Australians with a My Health Record and their treating healthcare team.”
Once the rules are established, there will be an initial grace period to allow impacted healthcare providers to implement the changes.
“In limited situations, healthcare providers will be able to seek extensions for more time to update their systems and processes before they must start sharing information to My Health Record,” says the government’s FAQ sheet.
“Extensions will need to be submitted to the Australian Digital Health Agency – who is the My Health Record system operator. The agency will determine if an extension can be given, and for how long.”
Patients will remain in control over who can access and view their My Health Record data and can choose not to have a record.
Records for these patients will be exempt from upload requirements. There will be new requirements for record keeping in cases where exemptions apply, assumedly for providers.
The Australian Digital Health Agency is working with pathology and diagnostic imagine providers to support initial implementation.
“The agency will continue to work proactively with and provide technical support to in-scope healthcare providers and their software suppliers,” says the FAQ.
The agency’s clinical reference group will develop clinical guidance for healthcare providers.
