Published at LXer:

Anyone who knows me well, knows that I am huge fan of Linux and open source. This is perhaps why I get so frustrated with the US health care industry and its general lack of interoperability. I could use many standards as an example, however, for this discussion I’m using the ASTM Continuity of Care Record (CCR) as an example. Now I’m not picking on the CCR. The format is XML (good), and while there is always room for improvement, I think the general structure is reasonable and workable. I’d also point out that David Kibbe and Steven Waldren, two keep champions for the CCR, have always been nice and helpful any time I’ve asked a question on the list serve. I’m using the CCR as example just because the barrier to access is so low ($100). Much of the following is summarized from an inquiry I made to the CCR list serve about a year ago.

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