The nation’s move to electronic health records promises to be a technological shift on a scale not seen since computers hit banking or plastic cards took the place of the paper checkbook. San Luis Obispo-based information technology security firm InfoGard will be right in the middle of it.

In September, the federal government named InfoGard as one of the three companies in the country authorized to certify the security measures of electronic health record systems.

The federal government’s goal is to create a nationwide health care information network that lets a rural doctor’s office and a major teaching hospital transfer patient data instantly. The Obama administration has promised $1.2 billion in incentives for providers to make the switch within the next few years. But the key to its success will be consumer confidence in how secure the data is.

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