IT service provider the BITMARCK Group has announced that the development of the electronic patient record (EPR) for the German healthcare market is on track.
BITMARCK has been commissioned by the German federal parliament to carry out the technical implementation of the EPR for over 80% of statutory health insurance companies.
Since mid-2019, the company has been working on the project with Austrian firm RISE (Research Industrial Systems Engineering).
WHAT HAPPENED
Germany’s statutory health insurance funds are required by law to provide their insured persons with the EPR from the beginning of January next year.
According to BITMARCK, the finished product will be approved by gematik, Germany’s company for telematics applications of the health insurance card, and will be able to go live on time.
The cooperative venture between RISE and BITMARCK is currently making progress in the independent software development of the system and in setting up a mobile application for the insured.
A so-called VAU solution will ensure that operators do not have access to patient data.
ON THE RECORD
Professor Thomas Grechenig, spokesman of the RISE management board, said of the collaboration:
“We are making excellent progress and meeting our deadlines. The reason for this is, among other things, the great interest of the entire BITMARCK project team in the actual benefits of the EPR for the insured as well as in maintaining a high level of design options for the individual insurance companies.”
On the part of BITMARCK, the RISE spokesperson said the company was experiencing a tight implementation and was thinking about the direction of service providers, patient benefits and creating an ecosystem for the entire health sector. Thus, it says it is ready to act for the inter-sectoral support of the insured that is so important in everyday life.
BITMARCK chief executive Andreas Strausfeld welcomed the progressive networking of the German health sector:
“We are pleased to support the efforts of the Federal Ministry of Health to establish a comprehensive and forward-looking platform. The development of our EPR continues to proceed according to plan and we are convinced that we will be able to supply our customers with a finished, gematik-approved product, including operation, on time on January 1, 2021.”
GOOD TO KNOW
BITMARCK is an entrepreneurial association of around 100 health insurance companies, with a total of 26 million German insured citizens. It is responsible for the development, maintenance and support of the IT systems of the statutory health insurance funds.