Feature Story

May 17, 2007

Personal Health Records - Features May Not Match Needs of Underserved Individuals

Mathematica to Evaluate Two Health Initiatives:

A new issue brief from Mathematica Policy Research, Inc., describes the features of 21 software-based Personal Health Records (PHRs).

It also assesses whether the features match the needs and preferences of underserved individuals, most of them minorities who face economic, cultural, or linguistic barriers to health care, and often have low health and computer literacy.

PHRs are comprehensive paper- or electronic-based systems for recording an individual's health-related information, such as family medical history, insurance coverage, demographic data, immunizations, prescribed and over-the-counter medications, diagnosed diseases, and the like.

In addition, many said they would pay modest set-up and update fees, but they are reluctant to pay maintenance fees.

Mathematica® conducted focus groups with individuals from underserved low-income minority groups to discuss PHRs and their capacity to improve health care.

All participants were between the ages of 30 and 80 and resided in a medically underserved area of New Brunswick, N.J. Discussion themes included how people keep track of their health information, reactions to the PHR concept, and desirable qualities of a PHR.

"Rapidly expanding PHR offerings suggest that consumer demand for this technology is expected to be strong in the future," said Lorenzo Moreno, lead author of the brief and a senior researcher at Mathematica.

The brief suggests that PHR developers may be reluctant to adapt their products to specific populations until technical, privacy, and security standards are established and a business model proves successful.

Mathematica, a nonpartisan firm, conducts policy research and surveys for federal and state governments, foundations, and private-sector clients.