Frist and Daschle reflect on HITECH, next phase of healthcare

WASHINGTON, D.C—“I think there's a wide world of opportunity out there as we look at the integration of payment and delivery reform. The application of health IT, as we consider models, is essential,” said former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle during a panel discussion on the HITECH Act-era and beyond at the 2015 ONC Annual Meeting on Feb. 2.

“As I talk to providers and payers and patient groups alike, there's widespread recognition that we ought to have a value-based population health model, but a recognition that we're not going to get to that model unless we get to good technological integration,” said Daschle.

The HITECH Act of 2009 culminated from bipartisan discussions, and a very deliberate process that took place over a period of time, said Daschle. He said three forces contributed to the shaping of the Act: (1) the rapid advancement in technological capability; (2) the application of innovative new policies; and (3) the recognition that federal investment is the most effective way to bring about change.

“We’ve made incredible progress. We have to look back with satisfaction and great excitement and a recognition that, in this transformational time, there may not be anything that has impacted our healthcare sector more than technology and health IT,” said Daschle.

Five years later “we are at an inflection point,” said former Senate Majority Leader William Frist, who also participated in the panel. This act, as well as the Affordable Care Act, must be constantly fought for and refined. The government must establish a framework “that’s nimble enough and flexible enough to respond to what we learn in an iterative way every day in the private sector," he said. 

And while the federal government refines its regulatory framework, “the innovation and dynamism will almost certainly come from the private sector and the entrepreneurial spirit.” New innovations will emerge from “engineers who have never looked at healthcare in the past but will be bringing their systems approach to healthcare today,” he said.  

Meanwhile, the focus must move from health IT adoption to usable data, and this necessitates interoperability, said Dasche.

“The interoperability roadmap is “indicative of the recognition of the importance of interoperability and health IT as we apply policy to the challenges we face going forward,” he said.

But, he cautioned “interoperability along is not enough.” Rules of engagement and governance are critical, as are privacy and security considerations. “We've got a lot of work to do with regard to creating that policy infrastructure that will accommodate this rapid change in technology that we're experiencing.”