Consumers Say Benefits of Electronic Health Records Outweigh Risks

Sixty percent of adults believe the benefits of using electronic health records outweigh the potential privacy risks, according to a recent Wall Street Journal Online/Harris Interactive poll, the Wall Street Journal Online reports.

The survey, conducted from Nov. 12 to Nov. 14, included 2,153 adults and has a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points.

According to the survey, 63% of adults believe EHRs could significantly decrease medical errors and 55% believe EHRs could significantly reduce health care costs. In addition, 67% of adults said the use of EHRs could improve quality of care by reducing duplicative or unnecessary tests, and 74% said they believe patients could receive better care based on scientific knowledge if physicians and researchers were able to share information more easily using EHRs.

However, 51% of adults said that using EHRs would make it more difficult to ensure patient privacy (Bright, Wall Street Journal Online, 11/28).