EHR spotlight on interoperability, Meaningful Use, security
The Office of the National Coordinator of Health IT (ONC) ended 2012 on a high note but not without laying down the gauntlet for 2013 and the future of Meaningful Use.
“If we thought healthcare was just fine, we wouldn’t be here today,” said Farzad Mostashari, MD, ScM, national coordinator of health IT, speaking at ONC’s annual meeting on Dec. 12.
Mostashari rallied for health IT, saying, “change is good and [so is] every disruptive innovation that ever happened happened because of improvement in the technology that enabled it. We’re bringing that all together. That’s why we’re here. That’s why I’m so proud to be called the national coordinator for health IT.”
That change will occur through openness, transparency, being accountable and holding each other accountable, he said. He wants ONC to remain open to letting others help and be inclusive. “We don’t have all the answers. We can do together what none of us could do on our own.”
A data brief from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics reported early in December 2012 that the percentage of doctors adopting EHRs has increased from 48 percent in 2009 to 72 percent in 2012. The ONC report shows that since 2009, the percent of physicians with computerized capabilities to e-prescribe has more than doubled, from 33 percent to 73 percent. Within the past year, 56 percent of physicians have the computerized capabilities to engage with patients and their families by providing patients with summaries after visits, an increase of 46 percent.
Despite those numbers, Sen. Mark Warner (R-Ga.) called for further pushing on Meaningful Use, also speaking at ONC’s annual meeting. That pushing needs to happen “not at some mystical point in the future but right now. Meaningful Use is great but without interoperability you are not creating the comprehensive promise” we’ve all been assured of.
The HITECH Act, part of the federal stimulus plan, was initially thought to include about $27 billion in health IT but now ticks north of $30 billion. “That’s some serious dough,” said Warner. “Here we are four years after stimulus and while progress has been made, we need to put our foot on the accelerator even more. We recognize that it requires all of us to get into our discomfort zone if we’re going to get this done.”
Mostashari agreed that more needs to be done. “We have the wind at our backs. Technology is on the move. Payment systems are shifting. Are we done? No! We’re barely started. I’m sorry to say we’re barely started. We can get so much better. We have to get so much better.”
No doubt you too are working to "get so much better." Please share your experience and plans as we begin a new year.
Beth Walsh
bwalsh@trimedmedia.com
Clinical Innovation + Technology
Editor
Editor Beth earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism and master’s in health communication. She has worked in hospital, academic and publishing settings over the past 20 years. Beth joined TriMed in 2005, as editor of CMIO and Clinical Innovation + Technology. When not covering all things related to health IT, she spends time with her husband and three children.