Survey: Secondary Use of
Electronic Health Data Will
Improve Care, Cut Costs

NEW YORK — The secondary use of data collected in electronic medical records will be the key to greater quality and cost savings in the next five years, according to a new report. >more

States Can Now Apply for Health IT
Medicaid Funding, CMS Says

WASHINGTON — The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is now releasing healthcare IT funding from the stimulus package to state Medicaid programs. >more

Maryland Launches HIE
with $10M in Startup Funding

BALTIMORE, MD — Health information exchanges are taking root throughout the Eastern seaboard, with Maryland the latest state to support interoperability.

State officials announced Wednesday the unanimous approval of up to $10 million in startup funding to support the >more

Study Places EHRs at Core
of Saving Cardiac Patients' Lives

DENVER – An EHR program that cut cardiac deaths by 73 percent has also kept patients healthy two years later, according to a new study.

The Kaiser Permanente program in Denver linked coronary artery disease patients and teams of pharmacists, nurses, primary care doctors and cardiologists with an electronic health record to help keep the patients healthy two years after they left the program >more

Health Insurer Promotes
HIT to Cut Costs

MINNETONKA, MN — The United States could cut some $540 billion in health spending over 10 years by using healthcare IT to modernize administration and transactional aspects of healthcare, according to a new report by the UnitedHealth Group.

Survey Finds Seniors Satisfied with Using Internet to Manage Health

OAKLAND, CA — Medicare beneficiaries are using the Internet to help manage their health, according to a Kaiser Permanente survey.

Obama to Congress:
Healthcare Reform Must Not Wait

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama told Congress Tuesday night that healthcare reform must be addressed this year. In his first speech to a joint session of Congress, he called for a three-pronged approach to saving the economy that includes healthcare reform and investments in energy and education.

It is time to confront "the crushing cost of healthcare," Obama said. >more

Stimulus: a Chance to Do IT Right

Most people who work in healthcare — particularly in the IT sector — are happy to have the $19 billion for healthcare IT, part of the government's $739 billion economic stimulus package.

It seems to have widespread support within the industry, from policy wonks to vendors.  >more

House Passes Stimulus Package
with $30 Billion in Net
Health IT Bonuses

WASHINGTON — The House passed an $819 billion economic stimulus bill Wednesday night that includes $20 billion for healthcare IT and policy changes that are expected to result in $30 billion in net bonuses for providers who adopt and use certified healthcare IT products over the next 10 years. >more

HL7 Passes Standards for EHR System for Children

ANN ARBOR, MI — Health Level Seven (HL7), a healthcare IT standards development organization, has passed the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)-approved standard that specifies basic functional requirements for child healthcare in an electronic health record system.

HL7's Child Health Functional Profile is designed to define the general pediatric functions critical for electronic health record systems that are used to care for children.  >more

Stakeholders, Lawmakers Push Healthcare IT Advancement at HIMSS Forum

WASHINGTON — Experts, lawmakers, public officials and other stakeholders gathered at the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society's public policy forum this week to promote healthcare IT advancement and celebrate progress. >more

Leavitt Promotes E-prescribing Amid Provider Concerns About Barriers

WASHINGTON — Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt said Monday his department will do all it can to promote the use of electronic prescribing as a way to launch widespread use of healthcare IT.

Advancing electronic prescribing is and has been "a top goal" of this administration, Leavitt said. >more

Health Care Information Technology:
Getting the Policy Right 

While health care transactions generate an enormous volume of data, too much of it is disjointed and inefficiently used. Recent studies indicate that better management and use of this information could generate tens of billions of dollars in savings, reducing administrative costs while improving medical care. >more

Physicians See Digital Records as Key to Healthcare Reform 

ALPHARETTA, GA — A new survey shows that 46 percent of physicians believe that automating patient records is key to streamlining healthcare and driving reform.

The 26-question survey, titled "Jackson & Coker's 2008 Healthcare Professionals' Opinions on Presidential Health Plans," was e-mailed during March to thousands of physicians and health professionals across the country. >more