New Dems Offer Roadmap Forward on Health IT

Apr 15, 2008 Issues: Health Care

Set goal of fully interoperable nationwide Health IT exchange with 75% adoption by 2018

Washington, D.C -Today, Members of the New Democrat Coalition joined New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg in urging Congress to take action on measures that would encourage rapid nationwide implementation of health information technology.

At a press conference with Mayor Bloomberg, the New Dems unveiled a roadmap that will guide their efforts to achieve a fully interoperable health IT exchange by 2018 with adoption by at least 75% of providers. The New Dems made their announcement shortly after meeting with Mayor Bloomberg to discuss the successful transition that New York City is making from paper records to safe, secure electronic health records.

"Moving our health care system into the 21st Century will save money and improve patient care. The New Democrat Coalition believes we should start by establishing a nationwide electronic medical records system," said Congressman Joseph Crowley (NY-7). "New York City successfully implemented a Health IT system, and it should serve as a model for Congress as we work to establish a nationwide program. Thank you to Mayor Bloomberg for accepting my invitation to brief the New Democratic Coalition."

In New York City, EHR's are already used by more than 200 primary-care providers that care for more than 200,000 people. The City is on track to meet its goal of equipping more than 1,000 local health care providers-many of them practicing in the city's poorest and sickest neighborhoods-with secure EHR systems by the end of the year, benefiting more than a million patients. This effort will create the nation's largest community-based EHR network.

"Nationwide, we're paying - heavily - for a system that's geared toward caring for us once we're sick. We'd be better served by a system that's designed to keep us healthy, which is what we are doing in New York City. Electronic medical records are key to putting the focus on prevention rather than treatment, and we're very grateful for the opportunity to share what we're doing in New York to shape a national program," said New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg.

Broad implementation of Health IT will help improve safety, quality, access to information, public health, and patient involvement. In the broader context of health reform, universal implementation of health IT can help effectively reach the ultimate goal of meaningful health coverage for every American.

"As New Dems we are serious about our commitment to using innovation to enable us to meet our goals, and that is why we are so excited about the tremendous promise health IT holds for improving health care in America.," said Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz, Co-Chair of the New Dem Health Care Task Force. "If implemented widely and used effectively, health IT will move America's health care system forward in leaps and bounds by increasing quality, saving lives, and making more efficient use of taxpayer dollars."

The RAND Corporation estimates widely implemented, interoperable, and effectively employed health IT could save the U.S. $147 billion per year in increased efficiency, decreased hospitalizations, and decreased medical errors.

"Harnessing the power of cutting edge medical technology is essential to improving medical outcomes and reducing health care costs," said Capps, Co-Chair of the New Democrat Coalition Health Care Task Force. "We need to build a health information technology infrastructure that brings medical records and prescribing into the 21st Century while protecting the privacy of patients."

Representing the largest payer of health care in the United States, Congress must pass legislation to facilitate a firm infrastructure, standards, and financing system to solidify our long term commitment to health IT.

"Through my work in the health care field, I have seen firsthand the potential for savings and gains in quality of care that can be achieved through health IT adoption. For every dollar we invest in health IT, we could realize $41 in savings - in addition to saving thousands of lives and preventing innumerable medical errors," Congressman Jason Altmire, Co-Chair of the New Dem Health Care Task Force said. "States, localities, and our nation's hospitals are already leading efforts to implement health IT on their own. Congress needs to take action now to ensure we establish national standards on interoperability and privacy, so we can move toward universal use of health IT."

New Democrats' Rx for Health IT
Quality and Affordably through Innovation

Infrastructure

  • Codify the HHS office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology.
  • Create a public-private entity to develop and recommend national standards for the electronic exchange of health information.
  • Create a legal framework for health record data banks.
  • Cover fees to participate in health record data bank for Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP enrollees.
  • Develop and test quality measures to promote telemedicine.

Standards:

  • Establish clear, comprehensive national standards, which preserve stronger state laws, for a health IT network, including specific standards on interoperability, privacy and security of health information, telemedicine, public health use, and chronic disease management.
  • Require the first report of standards for health IT implementation in public programs, including Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP, to be submitted to Congress by January 1, 2010.
  • Create a framework that permits medical information to be shared between relevant providers but allows patients to opt out, to request a copy of their record when so desired, and be notified in the event of a security breach.
  • Put in place strong remedies for violations of privacy protections and establish standards on patient consent that facilitate efficiency through data sharing.

Financing:

  • Create appropriate incentives for providers, small and large, that will bring costs in line with benefits and allow a transition to begin.
  • Support a mix of incentives, including grants, loans, and tax incentives to encourage faster technology implementation.
  • Target incentives in public programs, like Medicare, that encourage effective use of technology in improving care and health outcomes.
  • Support spreading the cost of nationwide health IT implementation among all stakeholders who stand to gain financially from its existence.

LONG TERM GOAL: Our goal is to achieve a fully interoperable health information exchange by 2018 with at least 75 percent of providers participating in the system. The New Dems support investing public funds, because for every $1 the government contributes, the system will yield $41 in savings, in addition to hundreds of lives saved and medical errors averted.

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