AMA hosting town hall on physicians' EHR frustrations

The American Medical Association (AMA) and the Medical Association of Georgia (MAG) are teaming up to host a town hall meeting to give physicians a chance to discuss their concerns about EHRs and looming regulations. Among the national and local leaders who will take part in the conversation are U.S. Representative Tom Price, MD, and AMA President Steven J. Stack, MD.

Although the U.S. government has spent $24.6 billion to promote a digital health infrastructure based on the power of EHRs to enhance patient care, improve productivity and reduce costs and most physicians have adopted the technology, many physicians strongly believe the current course of federal regulations threatens to turn the promise of EHRs into a pipe-dream, according to a release. 

Government requirements have "twisted EHR technology so it interferes with face-to-face discussions with patients, requires physicians to spend too much time performing clerical work and creates new costs that divert resources away from patient care improvements. Meanwhile, the much anticipated benefits of being able to share important patient healthcare information electronically among providers in different settings have gone unfulfilled."

The town hall meeting is scheduled for Monday, July 20 from 7 to 8:30pm at the Westin Atlanta Perimeter North. During the meeting, the AMA also will discuss 

During the live event, the AMA will also discuss its national initiative to reframe federal regulations and encourage better designed EHRs that emphasize high-quality patient care as the primary focus.