Health Records

Editor’s Desk: Apple’s changing encryption story, patient data access

Apple's Health app icon

A news story at the beginning of the week shows a very changing position for Apple, which has focused for years on customer data access freedom and privacy but appears to have changed its tune when it comes to encryption. There's also news from the electronic medical records (EMR) industry, which may get shaken up this year thanks to new rules imposed by a federal government agency that oversees how medical records are maintained.

Editor’s Desk: Apple update death march, Adobe expectations, Apple Health and EHR

This week saw yet another point update from Apple to fix a problem, this time for an issue first introduced in late October. We also saw the release of an app we've been waiting for from Adobe for a year - one that's underwhelming many of us, it turns out. Apple surprised us with some welcome electronic health record integration; now if only the rest of the health care industry would catch up. Thoughts on all this stuff in this week's editor's desk roundup.

Apple Health works with VA, but not with my doctor

Apple's Health app icon

Apple's recent announcement that it's partnered with the U.S. Veterans Administration (VA) to make the VA's own Health Records system accessible within the Health application on the iPhone got me thinking: What the hell is wrong with my own health care provider? I'm not a vet but I almost wish I were, if it would simplify this process. Because the way I access my own information is a raging dumpster fire.