Web Giant Enters Health Record Market

Google Inc. has unveiled the Google Health consumer health information service.

Consumers can use the free, Web-based service to store personal health records, get information about their medical conditions, and search for doctors and hospitals, according to Google, Mountain View, Calif.

In some cases, consumers can import medical records directly from organizations such as a walk-in clinic chain; Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; the Cleveland Clinic Health System, Cleveland; and Quest Diagnostics Inc., Madison, N.J.

Consumers also can use the system to schedule a medical testing appointment with Quest and to find a variety of other health care resources, such as a medical record retrieval service, a medical consultation service, and a heart attack risk calculator developed by the American Heart Association, Dallas.