A cost effective method to create a universal healthcare identifier system

Abstract

The prohibitive cost associated with creating a universal healthcare identifier has been one of the primary barriers to the creation of such a system. The Voluntary Universal Healthcare Identifier (VUHID) project takes a radically different approach to solving this problem compared to previous proposals. This article examines the economic impact of this approach and discusses why the unique VUHID approach permits implementation of the system at a small fraction of previously estimated costs. © of articles is retained by authors.