Business Matters
E-Health Windfall?Obama plan to invest in health care IT means hospitals must do their homework
The drive to bring electronic health records to every hospital and physician office got a presidential boost when the incoming Obama administration linked investment in health information technology to an economic stimulus package.
On Dec. 11, President-elect Barack Obama introduced Tom Daschle as his nominee for Health & Human Services secretary and as head of a new White House Office of Health Reform, saying that the nation needs to invest in a drastic overhaul of the health system. Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, which will handle Obama’s economic stimulus bill, told The Washington Post that he considered health IT a key part of a stimulus package. Daschle, a former Senate majority leader, said that addressing the nation’s health care challenges offers the best hope for reducing personal bankruptcies and improving American competitiveness.
Obama did not provide details, but the plan he released during the campaign called for a $10 billion-a-year investment during the next five years to move the nation to broad adoption of health IT systems, including electronic health records. According to that plan, the investment would yield savings of $77 billion a year, if most hospitals and doctors adopted health IT and electronic health records. The savings would result from shorter hospital stays, fewer duplicative and unnecessary tests, more appropriate drug regimes and other efficiencies, according to the plan.
Suddenly, the prospect of a windfall of funds for health information technology appears plausible, perhaps even likely. The question of preparedness comes quickly to mind. Will we make the best use of such funds? The answer: only if we learn from the successes and challenges faced by other hospitals and health care organizations and only if we benchmark our HIT activities and results.
With this issue of Hospitals & Health Networks we launch a new monthly feature section focused on the annual Most Wired Survey and Benchmarking Survey. Each month we’ll either profile a winning organization or we’ll examine a key issue for HIT success. We’ll also bring you new Most Wired data analytics. The section begins on page 40. Of course, our readers are familiar with the regular July cover story highlighting the 100 Most Wired list, which will continue. Now, we’re providing year-round coverage of this important research.
Now more then ever it’s critical that hospitals benchmark their status and process with information technology. Although the current presidential focus is on the electronic health record, it is clear that we need to benchmark a broader set of activities that improve clinical and operational outcomes. The Most Wired Survey is the only benchmarking tool with the depth and breadth of data needed to evaluate adoption and use of these technologies.
To participate in the survey, go to www.hhnmostwired survey.com. To learn more about the survey, drop us an e-mail at mostwired@healthforum.com.
You can contact Alden Solovy at asolovy@healthforum.com
This article 1st appeared in the January 2009 issue of HHN Magazine.
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