Microsoft ‘vault ‘ open for dying Google Health records

SAN FRANCISCO – Microsoft on Monday offered its HealthVault as a new care center for digitized medical records kept at Google’s dying Health service.

Google announced last month that it is pulling the plug on its free Health service because it hasn’t flourished since its launch in early 2008.

“Microsoft continues to advance the HealthVault platform,” the Washington State-based technology firm’s Health Solutions Group general manager Nate McLemore said in a blog post.

“Google has been an important ally in providing customers with access to their data and tools to better manage care online,” he added.

Microsoft detailed a simple way for people to shift Google Health records to HealthVault in encrypted files to protect the privacy of the information.

Google Health service for storing and selectively sharing personal medical records online will “retire” on January 1 but users will be able to download their information through the end of 2012, according to the California firm.

Microsoft went live in October 2007 with a free online “HealthVault” billed as a US website where personal medical records can be stored and managed safe from snooping.

HealthVault lets people stockpile records such as blood tests, vaccinations and medical history and control access to select portions of the data to health care providers.