What We’re Reading: Patient Access to Health Records; Clinics Halting Abortion; Negative View of Health Care Cost

Patient Access to Health Records

Starting today, all health care organizations will be required to give patients access to their digital health records without a fee, according to STAT. The 21st Century Cures Act, which included rules requiring access to health records, was passed to let patients get their data and choose who to share that data with. Patients will be able to interact with their health information in a way akin to banking, so they can move their information electronically and link their accounts to services and apps. Even with this new rule, providers and data holders could still withhold information with certain exceptions, which prompted health data experts to admit that change will not be fast or easy.

66 Clinics Have Stopped Providing Abortion Services

A reduction in abortion access has occurred across the country, as 66 clinics nationwide have halted abortion services in the 100 days since the overturning of Roe v Wade, according to a report from the Guttmacher Institute that was covered by NPR. All these closures have been in the 15 states that have either banned or severely limited access to abortion. There are only 13 clinics that still provide abortion in these 15 states, all of which are in Georgia, where abortion is outlawed after 6 weeks. The Guttmacher analysis found that 26 of the 66 clinics had completely closed, which could mark a permanent inaccessibility of reproductive care in those areas.

Poll Reveals Health Care Negativity

A new Gallup poll found that more than half of Americans had a negative view on the cost and equity of health care in the United States. Approximately 75% of those polled gave the US health care system a failing grade for affordability, regardless of income level. Equitable care was also rated poorly by those polled, with 56% of Americans rating equitable care negatively. While the US health care system received more positive reviews on access and quality, with 62% rating access positively and 83% rating quality of care positively, these opinions broke down by racial and ethnic lines as Black and Hispanic Americans were more likely to give failing grades in both. More than 70% of Americans felt that the federal government should place limits on costs.