August 3rd, 2007
Veriscrip built on government regulation
One fact that marks healthcare IT is how you can build a profitable business just based on the need to enforce government regulations.
VirtualHealth Technologies of Lexington, Kentucky, for instance, is building itself on HIPAA, through a unit called Veriscrip.
HIPAA requires secure tracking of medical information, and controls who can access the records. VirtualHealth is adding a security module to Veriscrip that can secure pharmacy records as they track prescriptions in real-time.
With contracts for a pilot program in Kentucky in hand, the company is also building a medical office automation suite through its Medical Office Automation subsidiary.
The government project created a product that could be rolled out nationwide, and allowed expansion into related areas of computing.
This is sound business practice, which aims to save money, improving both privacy and patient care. But you won’t see this kind of public-private business model in many other industries.
It’s one of the things which makes healthcare IT different, and which leaves me impatient with ideological arguments regarding healthcare. Government is already in control, and that’s where much of the opportunity for profit lies.
Dana Blankenhorn has been a business journalist since 1978, and has covered technology since 1982. He launched the Interactive Age Daily, the first daily coverage of the Internet to launch with a magazine, in September 1994. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
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