Granted this can be a true life saver, but privacy has to enter here again somewhere. How long before the insurance payors might also have access to these types of records and someday demand the use before coverage would take place or deny a claim if one did not have one? How long before tracking capabilities are added? Those are just a couple questions that come to mind. BD
The chip is about the size of a grain of rice and is inserted in the patient’s right triceps. It houses a 16-digit number, which links to an online database that can be viewed after the chip is scanned by medical personnel. Nurses, doctors and other authorized employees then can view a Web page with the patient’s medical history, allergies, emergency contacts and information on the primary physician, said Allison Tomek, VeriChip’s vice president of investor relations and corporate communications.
The chip has no power source and cannot be used to track people, Tomek said.
A Florida company is marketing a microchip that can be implanted under the skin and used to report a patient’s medical history.
However, Gulf Coast uses a similar technology on patients when they arrive — a wristband with a code that can be scanned. The program is known as EMAR, or Electronic Medical Administration Record. Once scanned, the code reveals who the patient is, what medication he or she is on and other important information, Whiting said. Doctors can keep up with changes in their patient’s status remotely and can call in new medicines or check on other needs, Whiting said.
Gulf Coast also gives small cards to patients for them to list their prescriptions and allergies.
Panhandle residents have mixed feelings on the technology, which is not new — similar chips have been used on animals for decades.
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