This is a follow-up to my post on the reasons to store your personal health records online.

A number of services have emerged that allow you to store your health documents online.  Most are offered by private companies.  Some are free, while others are fee-based.  Some only allow you to type information into your PHR, while others allow you to upload health and other personal documents.

There are a number of things to consider when deciding whether to store your health documents online.

1.  Security.  Make sure the service you are considering uses an SSL connection.  Otherwise, your data will not be encrypted while being transmitted.

On your end, make sure you choose a strong password.  Choose a password that is hard to guess.  A strong password consists of a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols.  For more information, see what Wikipedia and Microsoft say about creating strong passwords.

2.  Privacy.  HIPAA sets privacy and security standards regarding the transmittal of electronic health documents.  It is important to note that only health insurance companies and medical institutions are required to abide by the regulations set forth in HIPAA.  Third party companies are not required to do so.  However, some third party companies – such as MyEsafeDepositBox, which Qvisory offers as a benefit of membership – willingly choose to follow HIPAA guidelines.

Some health insurance companies are beginning to offer online storage for your PHRs.  The advantage of using your health insurance company is that your data will be covered by HIPAA.  The disadvantage, however, is that your information will not be portable.  If you change health insurance companies you will not be able to bring your data with you.  Qvisory research indicates that those of us in the 18 to 34 year old age group will change jobs an average of 9.2 times before we reach 40 – that could mean a lot of moving and several different insurance companies in a short period of time.

Read the privacy policy.  Make sure the information you will be storing will not be sold or shared with other organizations.  Even if the company does not follow the HIPAA guidelines, they may still do a great job protecting your privacy.  Read the privacy policy – usually found at the very bottom of the website – to determine how your information will be protected.

3.  Functionality.  Different tools offer different services.  Some allow you to upload documents from your computer and store them in your account.  Some allow you to fax documents to your account.  One important thing to be aware of is that some services (like MESDB) provide you with your own private fax number, while others (like Revolution Health) give you a shared fax number.  If you use a shared fax number, all members of the service will be faxing their documents to the same number.  The company’s employees will receive your faxes and manually put them online in your account.  Using a private number cuts out the middleman and establishes a direct relationship between you and your account.

Some of the well-known companies that provide online storage for your PHRs include MyEsafeDepositBox, Microsoft (HealthVault), WebMD, and Revolution Health. 

Which PHR tool is right for me?

The services provided vary between tools.  What’s right for one person won’t necessarily be right for everyone.  Ask yourself the following questions to determine which tool is right for you:

1. Do I need to be able to store documents or will typing in my medical history suffice?
2. Do I need to be able to upload documents to my account?
3. Do I need to be able to fax documents?
4. How much do I want to pay for the service?
5. How does this company/tool protect my privacy?

A recent survey revealed that 56 percent of college students support the idea of storing their health records online.  Do you currently use an online service to store your health records and other personal documents?  If so, which service do you use?  If not, why not?