Blockchain going mainstream in healthcare

Major trade magazines don’t tend to write stories on things that are truly on the leading edge of the industry they cover. So many next-big-things come along and then fade out quickly that some caution is in order.

There’s enough of a critical mass on blockchain in healthcare now that Modern Healthcare recently gave it an in-depth look in its Transformation Hub: Will Blockchain Save the Healthcare System?

The bulk of the article covers the very real value that blockchain is delivering on today, such as provider credentialing and directory information, and some applications that are just coming into focus, such as tracking the status of claims and a tool for evaluating outcomes under bundled payment arrangements to pay providers on the basis of those outcomes in real time.

The question is whether, and maybe more importantly, how and after how long, these efforts will build toward what the magazine calls “the holy grail for blockchain in healthcare”: creating a truly portable, comprehensive and accurate system of patient medical records.

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