SMART CARDS and HEALTHCARE: The Time Has Come
Smart cards burst onto the world scene in 1974, when Frenchman Roland Moreno paid for a telephone call with an electronic card. Once considered the vanguard of technological innovation, Smart cards have now firmly moved into mainstream America. From usage by the federal government for a host of purposes (employee identification cards, passports), to private sector usages of network and personal authentication, Smart cards have found their way into virtually every industry, including healthcare.
How Do Smart Cards Work In Healthcare?
Some of Smart cards greatest successes have been in the healthcare arena. Countries with national healthcare systems such as France and Germany have issued over 150,000,000 Smart cards that carry health and identification data. As in other countries, the importance of Smart cards has proven to be beneficial to the healthcare market for data access, accuracy, and management. Technology adoption within the U.S. healthcare market has certain challenges unknown to other industries (e.g. HIPAA mandates). However, over the years, standards have been established along with best practices to facilitate wide-scale implementation of Smart cards to the benefit of all participants.
Additional Materials
LifeMed Brochure
Smart Cards in Healthcare: A Logical Evolution (White Paper)
LifeMed Webinar Presentation
Healthcare CFO: Guide to Smart Cards
