Senate's Technophobia Infects Health IT

Nextgov Editor at Large Bob Brewin reported on Thursday that the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is holding a conference on Friday to talk to contractors about a new $9 million program that will rely on social media, virtual worlds and other online apps to help soldiers cope with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries. The agency is doing this despite the Senate and the House Armed Services committees saying they don;t like the idea -- so much so that they aren't funding it, at all. They say DARPA doesn't have the expertise in health privacy law to properly protect soldiers' medical information.

But could there possibly be more behind the decision to zero out the program? Could the Senate, not known for its techno-prowess, be more than a tad skeptical about this social media fad? From the Senate's report on the fiscal 2011 Defense authorization bill (emphasis added):

The budget request included $90.1 million in PE 62304E for cognitive computing, including $9.0 million for the development of a social networking site for veterans. The committee recommends a reduction of $9.0 million to terminate this specific project since its activities do not appear to align themselves with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's vision of addressing challenging problems. Furthermore, such activities, if truly deemed necessary, should be undertaken by either a service or an appropriate agency that has the necessary policy and legal expertise to ensure personal privacy and the confidentiality of health data on such a site.

That's the kind of snarky disclaimer someone writes when they think an idea isn't truly necessary. It's like saying, "Well, if you really must, then . . . ."

I think it would be helpful to remember that these severely wounded soldiers are very young, meaning they never knew life without the Web, virtual worlds and gaming; they text; they download music from the Internet; they are more than just technologically adept; and social media is how they live their lives. In addition, many of these soldiers most likely live in rural areas where access to support is thin, or many miles away.

Truly necessary? Really?