The use of blockchain technology, according to Kali Durgampudi, CTO of healthcare payments business Zelis, is essential for safeguarding patients’ sensitive data from fraudsters.

As the sector attempts to digitize its “archaic paper-based processes,” Durgampudi observed that privacy and data security are among the major challenges in healthcare.

In view of the increasing frequency of cyberattacks worldwide, he asserted that “Blockchain technology has the ability to allay many of these concerns.” He also stressed the significance of using a “impenetrable” digital ledger to safeguard sensitive patient and financial data.

“Since the information cannot be modified or copied, blockchain technology vastly reduces security risks, giving hospital and healthcare IT organizations a much stronger line of defense against cybercriminals.”

Durgampudi continued by pointing out that, in comparison to present healthcare payment arrangements, blockchain technology can assist bring improved transparency and efficiency. He claimed that because emails may go wrong and there was no way to confirm delivery, many payers and providers were reluctant to exchange information via email.

Blockchain offers total visibility into the whole claim lifecycle, from the time a patient registers at the front desk to the time they submit an explanation of benefits, he continued.

Real world use

IBM, a global leader in technology, is one of the major businesses that has worked on blockchain-based healthcare solutions.

The company’s blockchain division has released a number of healthcare solutions, including ‘Blockchain Transparent Supply,’ which tracks the supply chain for pharmaceuticals that must be kept at a specific temperature, ‘Trust Your Supplier,’ a service for finding verified suppliers, and health credential verification.

In March 2021, Cointelegraph reported that IBM and former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo were collaborating on a trial of a COVID-19 immunization passport known as the “Excelsior Pass.” The passport was made to be able to use IBM’s blockchain to validate a person’s immunization history or test results.

Enterprise blockchain VeChain is a significant player in the blockchain-based healthcare industry. The initiative and Shanghai’s Renji Hospital collaborated in June 2017 to introduce a blockchain-based In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF) service application.

In July 2021, VeChain also collaborated with the Republic of San Marino to introduce an NFT-based vaccination passport that was advertised as being globally verifiable by the scanning of QR codes attached to the certificate.

This week, Durgampudi was joined by blockchain investor David Jia, who holds a Ph.D. in neuroscience from Oxford University.

Jia stressed in a blog post published on Medium on July 21 that the management of clinical trial data, patient information, and claiming/billing could all be considerably enhanced by blockchain technology.

In order for a patient’s record to be moved between providers, insurers, and specialists with relative ease, accuracy in medical records over the long term as well as accessibility are needed. Medical records might be safely updated in almost real-time if they are kept on a blockchain, the author claimed.