"Microsoft Corp. on Thursday launched a Web site HealthVault.com that lets people store medical information online, moving into a consumer health care business targeted by Google Inc. and other technology players...
...The Web site also incorporates HealthVault Search, a specialized medical search engine to tap into the growing base of consumers who are increasingly turning to the Web to find health information....
Technology and health companies for years have promised to change the industry by cutting waste and linking providers, insurance companies and patients in technologically safe ways. But without widely agreed standards or even a broad move toward electronic records, most offices are still filled with paper, frequently frustrating patients...
...Microsoft said it plans to reach out to doctors, hospitals and health services companies to build Web applications to work with HealthVault. It's a strategy similar to how it encouraged other technology companies to build applications on top of its Windows operating system."
