In the almost two years since his election, President Obama has demonstrated his Administration’s commitment to expanding the use of information technology in order to improve the quality and constrain the costs of health care.
Most significantly, he championed the inclusion of a bold health information technology (HIT) initiative in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 that dramatically broadened the responsibilities of the Department of Health and Human Service’s Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) and funded new incentive payments for medical providers to adopt certified IT solutions. Congress demonstrated its support by establishing additional HIT provisions to complement the ARRA programs currently being implemented in the recently-enacted health reform bill.
Since the HIT provisions were signed into law, ONC and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have started to finalize a strategy and rulemakings that offer greater transparency to all interested parties, but this much is clear: the federal government’s support for and coordination of a nationwide HIT architecture creates substantial challenges and opportunities for medical service providers and private sector companies that can navigate the federal certification process.
On July 13, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the release of two regulations implementing the new HIT policy. The first, released by CMS, defined the minimum requirements for providers to qualify for the Medicare and Medicaid incentive payment programs. The second, released by ONC, , identified the standards and certification criteria for electronic health record (EHR) technology to assist eligible professionals and hospitals in adopting the appropriate HIT and to ensure the technology is capable of performing the required functions. At the end of August, ONC announced the first organizations selected as ONC-Authorized Testing and Certification Bodies (ATCBs).
With the fluidity of the development of a nationwide HIT architecture, there are many opportunities for medical providers and other stakeholders. As health care reform is implemented there will be more focus on the expanded role of HIT and emerging health care technologies, including the challenges of ensuring privacy, security and portability of personal health records, interoperability of systems, data management and analysis, and the development of telemedicine.