Australia's Department of Health rolled out a public consultation to develop a framework for the secondary use of My Health Record (MyHR) systems data in the country. The framework will build upon existing privacy laws to enable secondary use of health data for the public good. The use of data for solely commercial and non-health related purposes is considered out of scope. MyHR allows residents to share health information online with healthcare providers, such as information from Medicare, prescription data on medicines and test results, along with documents uploaded by the GP (like letters to specialists) and hospitals (such as discharge summaries and follow-up care information). The Australian government is planning a national roll-out of an opt-out model of MyHR. According to the consultation paper, as the volume of information in My Health Record grows and more Australians get a My Health Record, it may become one of Australia’s most comprehensive health data resources. While the primary purpose of MyHR is to help doctors and providers with clinical decision-making, "secondary use of data" refers to using the information for purposes other than the provision of direct healthcare to the individual person. The secondary use of MyHR data is expected to glean insights into the effectiveness and safety of medical treatments and clinical care across Australia's health system.
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