This August, three Australian general practitioner networks were chosen as test sites for the Australian National E-Health Transition Authority's pilot project on implementing a national electronic health records system. Each site's contract will last two years and the project is estimated to cost $12.5 million (US$12.1 million) in total, which was accounted for in last year's federal budget. Health Minister Nicola Roxon announced that the sites will test the government's newly implemented patient Healthcare Identifier numbers and will be the first to send hospital discharge summaries and referrals using national requirements. Although Minister Roxon advised that it would take at least two years for personal health information to be readily available to patients, these technological advances are intended to provide better access to patients' records, increase achievement of clinical outcome measures, and break down information barriers.
http://www.cio.com.au/article/357267/e-health_records_become_reality
