Agencies need centralized databases, Oracle CEO says

Too many disparate databases and not enough information sharing are the fundamental problems preventing government and the private sector from effectively harnessing the efficiency of information technology, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison said Tuesday. Speaking at the E-Gov 2001 conference in Washington, Ellison cited the health care industry as a classic example of what he calls "information fragmentation," where each industry sector uses many different information systems to track similar information. The $1.5 trillion-a-year health care industry's prescription drug databases, for example, he said, should be on one global system instead of separate systems at each pharmacy. However, with the passage of medical privacy rules in the past year, some lawmakers and consumer groups have become increasingly concerned with citizens' ability to keep their medical records confidential. In response to these privacy concerns, Ellison said, "we have fabulous privacy: most of your records are lost. You don't get better privacy than that." Ellison said the current health record system of "manila folders and metal shelves" is no way to keep track of such valuable information in the 21st century. Ellison added that crime databases in the nation's cities also should be swept into a central system. "If you commit a crime in Chicago, you want to get to Detroit as soon as possible," Ellison said, referring to how the two cities have separate crime-tracking systems. The FBI also has its own fugitive system that operates separately, for the most part, from cities such as New York and Los Angeles, he said. "If you can't share information, you can't cooperate," Ellison said, which could lead to what he called "wastage" and "big-time problems." Ellison said the software industry is partly to blame, as various companies continue to sell specifically targeted solutions to government agencies such as the IRS, which employs more than one taxpayer information database. The key is fewer, larger databases, which will save businesses government agencies and taxpayers money in the long run. "The irony of all this is, if you want better information, you have to be willing to spend less," Ellison said.