After a two-year pandemic where technology has supported Australia’s COVID-19 response, digital health companies claim that the federal government is curbing innovation, according to a new report by industry-leading peak organizations, in the procurement process. Seeking reform.
What is it about
The Medical Software Industry Association’s Beyond the Pandemic – Future Proofing Australia’s Health Technology Industry surveyed members, including 150 companies from start-ups to large publicly traded companies, with two-thirds (68%) of respondents providing pandemic-related. I found that. service.
However, companies report that the federal government is overwhelmingly curbing innovation (59%), with nearly 61% saying that international companies are more favored than Australian companies in contracts with the federal government. .. More than half (53%) consider the government’s ICT procurement process to be unfair, and 74% feel it is unsupported by the government.
Important reason
Health technology has “replaced stethoscopes” as the only and most important tool in GP practice, according to a report released prior to the federal budget and the next election.
Since March 2020, more than 96 million telemedicine services have been provided to more than 16.7 million patients, according to Beyond the Pandemic. As of February 9, more than 38 million ePrescriptions were issued and by February 14, more than 62 million COVID-19 tests had been processed.
The survey also said that 35% of respondents received government funding for pandemic-related work, of which only 6% covered spending. One claimed to have invested more than $ 5 million in providing covid services.
On record
“Over the last two years, the level of collaboration between the industry and the Ministry of Health, Australian Digital Health Agency and even Australian services has improved significantly,” said Emma Hossack, CEO of MSIA. Healthcare IT News..
“But from now on, it is clear that all these efforts and major advances will not be of lasting benefit to Australia unless the industry is involved in the design of sustainable business cases.
“When it comes to implementing technologies that facilitate pandemic response, things work very well and ideally bring them to the table. With some trust and partnership, but how to achieve seamlessness. You have the opportunity to think about how you can work with us. The healthcare system Australia needs. But if it’s not done right now, it’s unlikely that such a vibrant business case will reoccur. ” ..
Larger context
“Beyond the pandemic,” MSIA members say they keep 95% of Australian health information in the system, but these companies remain largely unknown.
“Health information and how it is collected, delivered and stored may be the most important service used by Australians, but in most cases it is invisible,” it said. say.
The industry requires Medicare benefit schedules or other transaction payments for services to support the industry. This leads to cost-effectiveness and improved care outcomes such as reduced dosing mistakes.
MSIA says it also needs to provide adequate funding to enable the secure interconnection of thousands of healthcare systems.
Calling for a “fair go” when selling products to governments and providers, “there are nine requirements that companies need to manage to sell their software, which is expensive for all parties, especially taxpayers.” Insist.
The report recommends the introduction of a scheme that provides a guarantee that is consistent with the balance sheet of large international companies with high contracts, as they can bear the cost of future failures in the event of a problem. Big names don’t always match In 2018-19, Australian government spending on ICT-related products and services exceeded $ 3.9 billion, many at stake. “
