The State Alliance for e-Health, made up of governors and state officials from across the country, is calling on states to support e-prescribing and address medical privacy and security issues in order to boost healthcare IT.
Healthcare IT and health information exchange are tools of transformation that could lead to improved care as well as savings, the alliance asserts in a 60-page report released Tuesday called "Accelerating Progress - Using Health Information Technology and Electronic Health Information Exchange to Improve Care."
Gov. Phil Bredesen of Tennessee and Gov. Jim Douglas of Vermont chair the alliance.
Privacy and security rank No. 2 on the alliance's list of recommendations for state action.
The top recommendation is to provide leadership and support for e-health efforts in each state, especially on e-prescribing.
The others are:
- Promote the use of standards-based, interoperable technology;
- Streamline the licensure process to enable cross-state e-health;
- Engage consumers to use HIT in managing their health and healthcare; and
- Develop workforce capacity to support electronic HIE efforts.
"The State Alliance recognizes e-prescribing as a gateway to other advances in e-health," the alliance wrote in its report. "Therefore, the State Alliance calls on states to lead these efforts and take action to drive adoption of e-prescribing."
The alliance contends that health information technology and health information exchange are tools of transformation that could lead to improved care as well as savings.
The report notes that the use of IT and data exchange may also result in:
- Higher quality care through adherence to treatment protocols and guidelines;
- Reduction in adverse drug events;
- Fewer duplicative treatments and tests;
- Administrative efficiencies through decreased paperwork;
- Improved coordination of treatment through timely access to health information;
- Early detection of infectious disease outbreaks around the country;
- Disease management tracking; and
- Improved research capabilities.
"Clearly when it comes to healthcare value, Americans do not get what they pay for," the alliance states. It takes the healthcare sector to task for perpetuating inefficiency, failing to promote the use of evidence-based standards and not providing consumers with a way to compare prices to the quality of clinical services.
The alliance advocates building an information infrastructure so people have the knowledge and tools to analyze the cost and quality of the care provided. It also recommends providing incentives for consumers to better manage their health.
What should the states' role be in promoting the use of healthcare information technology and health data exchange? Send your comments to Editor Bernie Monegain at bernie.monegain@medtechpublishing.com.