Development of a Framework for Secondary Use of My Health Record Data

The Medical Technology Association of Australia (MTAA) welcomes the opportunity to make a submission to inform the Department of Health regarding the “Development of a Framework for Secondary Use of My Health Record Data”.

The MTAA is the national association representing 71 manufacturers and suppliers of medical technology used in the diagnosis, prevention, treatment and management of disease and disability. The MTAA’s objective is to ensure the benefits of modern, innovative and reliable medical technology are delivered effectively to provide better health outcomes to the Australian community.

MTAA is of the view that there are significant benefits to the healthcare system arising from the secondary use of MyHR data and notes that several OECD countries, including France, Belgium, the UK and the US have already recognised the benefits of the secondary use of personal health data for research to improve patient care and health system performance.

The secondary use of MyHR data can support the implementation of value-based healthcare as it can:

• Inform a patient centric model of care;
• Reward the value, rather than the volume, of healthcare interventions to manage healthcare costs;
• Improve patient outcomes through allowing the identification of valuable medical interventions and informing best practice; and
• Capture data on outcomes that are important to patients.

Additionally, MyHR can collect data on medical devices which has the following patient benefits:

• Earlier identification of performance or safety issues with medical devices;
• Increased capacity to identify the patients that have used or have been implanted with a device the subject of safety concerns;
• Greater assurance about the level of data available to support market access and reimbursement decisions;
• Access to medical devices that enable patients to resume activities of daily living rather than just those which result in a clinical outcome; and
• Identification of better performing medical devices without the need for costly clinical registries and inform their treatment decisions.

MyHR data can also improve Australia’s capacity to conduct clinical trials.

Given the above benefits, the framework being established by Government on the secondary use of MyHR data should ensure there is a balance between the capacity to access the data for valid uses that will progress healthcare in Australia and the need to maintain data security and individual privacy.