(2011-01-25) Is Bruce Sterlingsholy Fire Our Future

Is Bruce Sterling's 'Holy Fire' Our Future?

Holy Fire is about life in a post-apocalyptic world that’s been ravaged by plagues, run by the lucky, now-elderly survivors, some of whom have benefitted from life extension treatments doled out by the government. But access to those treatments and longer life are granted to those who live the healthiest lives, reflected by treatment scores computed by the government.

Last fall the federal government announced its intention to create a massive claims database for government health plans (see story). The database ostensibly will be used by the Office of Personnel Management to assess the “best value” for enrollees and taxpayers. There’s no reason to think the government will use de-identified data for anything but the greater good, but some aspects of the project raised the hackles of health care privacy experts.

Health reform will bring many millions of citizens under the umbrella of government care, most of whom are low income and trailing the majority of the population in so many economic, education and health indicators. That will be a segment of the population many will be inclined to use as a test bed for more aggressive intervention into personal lives.