Why the CDC Wants in on Blockchain

Distributed ledgers could help public health workers respond faster to a crisis.

If someone in your home state contracts hepatitis A, a dangerous disease that attacks the liver, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention needs to know about it. Health departments in neighboring states probably need to know about it, too, since the person may have contracted the virus from contaminated food or water in one of those states. The CDC, state and local health departments, and other organizations must routinely share public health data like this so they can control the spread of a range of infectious diseases. As straightforward as this may sound, though, it’s a massively complicated data-management challenge.

It’s also one that seems made for a blockchain, according to Jim Nasr, chief software architect at the CDC’s Center for Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Laboratory Services. For the past several months, Nasr has led a team working on several proofs of concept based on blockchain technology, with an eye toward building real applications next year. Most are geared toward better public health surveillance, which could include using a blockchain to more efficiently manage data during a crisis or to better track opioid abuse.

“Public health and blockchain really do belong together,” Nasr says. Success depends on the ability of peer organizations—the CDC, state and local health agencies, hospitals and clinics—to collaborate effectively and efficiently, and the “currency” for that collaboration is data, he says. “Moving that data from one peer to another in a secure manner, in a compliant manner, and in a transparent manner—as quickly as possible—is a key part of the business model.”

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/608959/why-the-cdc-wants-in-on-blockchain/