In almost all parts of modern life, technology works for us. You can check a flight with your phone, track your real -time heart rate or get custom edible suggestions based on your habits.
But when it comes to administering your health? Impression records are often stuck, repeating your medical history in each new appointment and completing the same forms over and over again. That is not just frustrating; It is dangerously unacceptable.
The leaders of all medical and technology attention recently met in the White House with a shared purpose: fix what is broken in health technology and build what works. This was not just a showcase, it was a sign. It is time to wait and time to start building.
I know what is at stake because I have lived it. My daughter Morgan has a rare disease. She sees 12 doctors and takes 21 medications. For more than a decade, it has sailed a maze of disconnected systems, repeated paperwork and inconsistent records. Among short appointments every few months, it almost does not receive daily comments, there are no intelligent tools to help handle their symptoms, without personalized advice, without real -time coordination among suppliers.
His smart watch encourages movement, but he doesn't know that Morgan lives with a weakening condition. It does not help you decide when to rest instead of pushing, or when to take one of your medications as needed. She does not receive the same custom and intuitive comments that we expect in almost any other part of life. And she should.
Recently, Morgan raised his medical records in an AI assistant, just to see what he would say. What surprised us: a subtle but critical discrepancy in its diagnoses that could make it eligible for a clinical trial, an essay that could offer the first real hope we have had in more than 15 years.
That is the promise of connected data and intelligent tools when they work. But at this time, they mostly do not. The federal government has made large investments in the digitalization of medical care. But digitalization alone is not enough.
The Medicare and Medicaid service centers, under the leadership of Dr. Mehmet Oz, have focused on building the fundamental infrastructure that the private sector needs to innovate. That includes collaboration with the US Doge Service. UU. To finally create a National Suppliers Directory for a long time, a digital map for medical care, so that systems can speak with each other in real time and so that patients can receive connected care.
At this time, there is no unique source of updated information about suppliers, where they practice, what specialties offer or how to connect with them. Each health insurance plan requires that suppliers present the same separate information, often dozens of times in different networks. The result? More than $ 2.7 billion in wasted administrative effort every yearaccording to the affordable quality medical care council. And without knowing where or how to send data that other suppliers need, medical offices cannot share them. An intelligent suppliers directory is the first step to solve it.
We are also modernizing how Medicare and Medicaid data is shared, with security and privacy integrated in each step. And we are clearing the way for the tools that help patients manage confidence, tools that feel so perfect, intelligent and human as the applications in which we already trust our daily lives. And this is the important thing: this is not a federal patient health information database. It is a network of suppliers, with patient privacy, consent and transparency incorporated from the beginning. People continue to control their data, deciding when, how and with whom it is shared.
But the federal government cannot do this alone. The applications and services that convert unprocessed information for daily decisions must come from the private sector: doctors, developers, caregivers and new companies.
That is why this effort matters. We are not just asking for ideas. We are also asking for action. We are asking companies to make real commitments: kill the clipboard and build safe data exchange networks. Develop tools that deliver real results and provide people with a medical care experience that is finally as intelligent, perfect and personalized as consumer products in their lives.
Imagine scanning a QR code in your doctor's office and instantly sharing your health history, such as scanning your boarding pass before a flight. Imagine having an AI assistant to know your care plan and help you manage risks, outbreaks, medications and appointments. Imagine receiving informed answers to your worries 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, wherever it is. That is not science fiction. This is how medical attention can be seen.
We have expected enough. Let's stop accepting what is broken and start building what works. The correct data at the right time can mean the difference between confusion and clarity, decrease and healing, loss and hope. Let's stop sending by fax and kill the clipboard.
Time is now. Are you inside? Unique movement at http://cms.gov/health-tech-ecosystem.
Amy Gleason is a strategic advisor to the Department of Health and Human Services and the Medicare and Medicaid service centers. She is also the interim administrator of the US Doge Service.
