Americans trust physicians, not government, with medical info
October 1, 1997 2 minutes read
Americans trust physicians, not government, with medical info
Americans question the safety of their personal records, but believe a national repository of medical information would benefit the nation’s health care system, according to a recent poll by Chicago-based Physicians Information Exchange (PIE).
PIE, a company owned and managed by doctors, is developing a national medical data base to enable doctors across the country to share clinical and cost data unconnected to patient names for research purposes. Using this system, doctors would be able to keep confidential patient information under their control at all times except when records are transferred to another physician at a patient’s direction.
According to the poll, half of Americans believe their medical information is "probably" or "definitely" not safe from unauthorized access, and they have similar feelings about other types of personal information, such as voting or educational. However, more than three-fourths of Americans trust their physicians to safeguard personal health information, while 69% would most prefer having their doctors control any repository of medical information. Far fewer want the federal government, insurance companies, or employers in charge of this sensitive data. (See chart, above.)
Survey respondents said a national repository of medical information controlled by physicians would:
- Assist doctors in identifying the most effective treatment procedure (88%).
- Create a national record of health care outcomes that could be used for medical research (86%).
- Help doctors achieve better cost control by identifying waste and inefficiency (84%).
Despite concerns about confidentiality, respondents were willing to share their medical information for certain purposes:
- 90% of Americans are willing to share their medical information with a physician to aid in their treatment.
- 78% are willing to share their information with insurance companies for processing of claims.
- 70% are willing to share medical information for the benefit of others as long as they are not identified.
- 56% would share medical information with the federal government to track the cost of Medicare and Medicaid expenditures.
- 54% would share the data with their employer to track medical expenditures.
This poll was included in a weekly omnibus survey of the general public that samples opinions of 1,000 U.S. adults each weekend. Poll results may be obtained by calling (314) 982-8604.
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