Google looks to modernize health data
SAN FRANCISCO — Google announced a partnership with a large U.S. health care system aimed at modernizing its information system and providing new tools for doctors, in the tech giant’s latest foray into the health industry.
Announcement of its arrangement with the Catholic health care system Ascension followed a Wall Street Journal report Monday that Google had access to thousands of patient health records without doctors’ knowledge.
Both companies stressed that their deal is compliant with federal health privacy law. Unlike most of the data Google collects on individuals, health data is strictly regulated by the federal government.
Google is providing cloud computing services to Ascension, which operates health centers in 21 states, mostly across the South and Midwest. It is also testing the use of artificial intelligence to examine health records and find patterns that Google says might help doctors and other providers.
Health care providers are increasingly interested in using data to help manage care and keep patients healthy. That might mean relatively simple things like tracking whether someone refills a prescription or something more complex like spotting a medical condition.
Health care systems are allowed to share patient information with business partners so long as the partners agree to safeguard the information.
The TSA said Wednesday that it expects to screen more than 2.7