Why do we need a national health safety identifier? Don’t we already provide enough information to allow our healthcare providers to easily identify us when we interact with them as consumers, members, and/or patients? If we create another identifier, won’t that just complicate an already complex situation?
The current problem is easily understood by looking at one well-known use case, patient registration, at a caring, well-intended and effective health system. Harris County Health District (HCHD) is focused on helping all residents in and around the Houston, TX area. HCHD traditionally did what so many other facilities do to make sure they are pulling the right records for the right person for the right treatment. Every patient trusts HCHD to start with the most basic step—properly identifying the person who has come for services.
