SAN FRANCISCO – The adoption rate of payer-sponsored personal health records, or PHRs, is directly related to greater convenience, features and promotion, a recent survey of payers reveals.

The informal survey by Healthcare IT News also showed that PHRs are just one way health plan members can access medical information electronically.

Kaiser Permanente members in seven of eight regions can activate their PHRs through kp.org to access lab results, immunizations, allergies and past office visit summaries, refill prescriptions, schedule appointments online and securely e-mail their doctors.

In some states, parents and guardians of minors can access children’s medical records and e-mail their pediatricians. And Kaiser is rolling out the ability for teens to access portions of their medical record and e-mail their doctor and will soon add an “adult proxy” access, granting access to caregivers.

Since August 2005, more than 1.55 million of Kaiser’s 8.7 million members have activated their PHRs and more than 1.1 million have viewed their information online, said spokeswoman Holly Potter.

Pre-populated records and identical information being presented to doctor and patient have contributed to Kaiser’s high adoption rate and “overwhelming positive response” from members, she said.

The Aetna CareEngine-powered, pre-populated PHR pilot was offered to 12 large employer groups with 450,000 eligible members in February 2007 and will be rolled out broadly in 2008. Aetna is adding PHR interaction with electronic medical records and also search capabilities.

As of June 30, overall use – by subscribers and their dependents – was measured at 11 percent, while use by subscribers was 22 percent.

“PHR usage has exceeded our initial estimates,” said spokeswoman Elizabeth Sell. “We believe this is a direct result of employer engagement and promotion of the PHR to their employees.”

Cigna rolled out its PHR at myCIGNA.com to its approximately seven million plan subscribers in May 2005. The 2007 adoption rate is less than 9,000 per month, according to spokesman Joseph Mondy.

“PHR adoption and use is relatively small compared to Cigna’s other online tools,” he said.

Cigna plans to provide more in-depth information, improve consistency and timeliness of information, provide better education for members, add consumer research and offer incentives.

Other payers are pursuing parallel projects.

WellPoint’s PHR has been available to all members for two years. With ideal utilization still a challenge, the health plan is educating its employer groups and trade associations, building new functionality and creating incentives.

Health plan-based PHRs may eventually evolve into portable “longitudinal patient records” by incorporating data transfer standards currently being developed by AHIP, said Charles Kennedy, MD, vice president of healthcare information technology. “In this way, your PHR can become a life-long record, following you from plan to plan,” he said.

In mid-June, WellPoint announced its individual health record, or IHR, pilot with partners Kettering Health Network of Ohio and technology provider CentriHealth.

The IHR offers PHR and EHR capabilities with a single record, including radiology data, lab results and clinical data from more than 150 individual data sources, used by both physician and patient.

“Integrated claims and clinical data on a near real-time basis give the physician and patient actionable information for better care management,” Kennedy said.

Florida’s AvMed Health Plans rolled out its PHR to its 220,000 members in July. Nearly 300 people have self-populated their records, said John Higbee, vice president and CIO.

While the program has started out slowly and is in the early stages, Higbee said, “We believe it’s the right path to be on.”

Through the Medem iHealth Web site, AvMed members can create printable summaries of their medical treatment in the last six months. AvMed is averaging 600 mini health records a month since the summer of 2006.

Higbee said AvMed is aligned with Medem’s long-term approach of getting data from practitioners to support the continuity of care record.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee is following a different path. Although the plan offers PHRs to all members, it is investing efforts in its clinical health record with Shared Health, spokesman Scott Wilson said.

“What’s more useful is physicians having access to a common file,” he said. “This holds much more promise for change.”