ABSTRACT
Proponents of linking all parts of the United States (US) healthcare sector together with a universal information system (UIS) have recently begun working on a comprehensive alternative to the current approach. The up-front cost of implementing such a system, however, remains an obstacle. Concerning the territorial issues and concerning the unwillingness to share, the absence of the profit motive in a UHS coupled with government control over facility placement helps get rid of competitive impulses. In Europe, while individual nations are working to standardize and integrate the flow of healthcare information internally, an effort has also begun to standardize and integrate it on a continentwide basis, thus further facilitating the sharing of resources. In 2000, the central government of Canada joined with its ten provincial and three territorial governments to develop an infostructure that would control, coordinate, and disseminate all health-related information electronically.
