COULD the British health sector be moving into the 21st century - the UK National Health Service has been banned from purchasing any more fax machines from next month, and will phase them out completely by 31 Mar 2020.
The announcement follows a Royal College of Surgeons study this year that found almost 9,000 fax machines were being regularly used across the NHS in England.
The UK Department of Health has ordered that organisations switch to more modern communications such as secure email, with a spokesperson saying faxes were a "continued risk to the confidentiality and safeguarding of patients".
However critics of the move have noted recent hacking attempts on hospital IT infrastructure, including last year's WannaCry attack during which "out-dated, redundant" fax machines ensured that blood products and medications could be ordered without delay.
American brewer MillerCoors has given a 101-year-old man a very special birthday present, after he attributed his longevity to his daily consumption of a Coors Light beer.
Andrew Slavonic from Pennsylvania received a branded fridge full of the brew, along with other merchandise and a trip to the brewery in Golden, Colorado after the company heard of his birthday tribute to the beer.
Slavonic has cut down his drinking in recent years - he used to drink regular Coors, but switched to the light version 15 years ago when he turned 86.
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