Electronic Health Card as Technology Driver: State secretary Caspers-Merk visits field test of electronic health card

At her visit today to InterComponentWare AG (ICW), the parliamentary state secretary in the German Federal Ministry of Health, Marion Caspers-Merk, welcomed the company’s field test of the electronic health card: “I appreciate every initiative from business that contributes to the earliest possible provision of a mature system for the electronic health card.” At its headquarters in Walldorf, ICW has started a field test in which it is testing the electronic health card system it developed together with its partners for practicality and acceptance among physicians, pharmacists, and citizens.

The eHealth company plans to equip all the Walldorf physicians and pharmacies with the electronic health card test system by the end of the year. By that time, about 1,000 citizens will receive an electronic health card and their own LifeSensor personal health record for the field test. In addition, plans call for connecting a fitness gym, which – with the permission of the customer – will be able to use the LifeSensor Fitness Assistant to develop training plans that are custom-tailored to the customer’s individual health status.

After the demonstration of the current test system, which can not only issue and accept electronic prescriptions, but also manages the data stored on the electronic health card and is integrated with the LifeSensor personal health record, Caspers-Merk commented: “The electronic health card with the associated value-added applications will not only improve the quality of medical care and contribute to reducing costs, it will also create high-quality jobs in Germany.” Wiesloch’s representative in the German parliament or ‘Bundestag’ added: “Particularly young companies in growth markets are creating jobs faster than established enterprises. Therefore, we want to further improve the overall conditions for such growth companies.” In 2005, ICW has already hired more than 45 new employees.

ICW CEO Peter Reuschel also sees great opportunities for the electronic health card: “In many countries, better ways to network the health care system are already being discussed or even worked on. If we introduce the personal health card in Germany quickly and smoothly, it can become an export hit for the German economy. That goes not only for the card and its telematic infrastructure, but also for the associated value-added applications, such as the electronic health record.” Due to the know-how it has already built up in conjunction with the German health card project and the LifeSensor personal health record, which it developed internally, ICW has won a contract in the Austrian eCard project. ICW is currently intensifying its internationalization activities and already has subsidiaries in the United States, Austria, and Bulgaria.



For more information please contact:
InterComponentWare AG
Dirk Schuhmann
Otto-Hahn-Straße 3
69190 Walldorf, Germany

Tel: ++49-(0)6227-385-133
Fax: ++49-(0)6227-385-199

E-Mail: dirk.schuhmann@icw.de

www.icw-global.com
www.LifeSensor.com




About InterComponentWare
InterComponentWare AG (ICW) is a leading international eHealth provider with office locations in Germany, the United States, Austria, and Bulgaria. ICW develops and markets components used to connect the various participants in the health care market. Among its key components are the hardware connector branded Medical NTBA and the technologically leading personal health record LifeSensor. As part of the German government-consulting bIT4health consortium, ICW offers crucial consulting services for the introduction of the electronic health card (eHC). The company actively promotes the implementation of standards in health care through participation in national and international initiatives for the installation of eHealth frameworks.