Social Acceptability of Medical Smart Cards
This is an interesting story about cultural contrasts. In Europe, where identify cards have existed long enough for people to forget about their origin as state security tools, smart cards like one developed at City University London can hold a patient’s medical records and automatically recognize things such as medication incompatibilities. This has great advantages for patient streaming into care facilities. In the US, where hostility not only to identify cards, but to government control of everyday issues must date back to the Articles of Confederation, smart cards generate more fear over misuse than attraction for convenience. Still, medical smart cards may be collateral to healthcare reform sooner or later, and if so, the MyCare card is a good model. MORE