Critics of the federal stimulus grants for EHR adoption say the federal government is throwing money at health IT and won't be getting anything in return for it. Whether you believe money should be going into an EHR adoption initiative, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT is making sure that stakeholders get a return on investment.
ONC and HHS didn't throw out money and hope that adoption happened on its own. They were very methodical in setting up the infrastructure in the form of standards and policies and technical assistance and resources. They have had a fairly transparent process and took into consideration the achievements of past committees and organizations in developing the meaningful use criteria.
David Blumenthal, MD, head of ONC, recently welcomed the participation of stakeholders to help shape the update of the Federal Health IT Strategic Plan. ONC is not going at this alone and expecting the industry to follow. You can't do that in this industry. You need participation and consensus, as much as can be garnered, to make this all work. ONC and HHS understand this.
The roadmap also included setting up regional extension centers to provide resources and technical assistance for healthcare entities that need help with implementation. The beacon communities will help highlight best practices for the rest of the country's efforts.
Blumenthal has been as accessible, appearing in many venues to discuss his office's vision and roadmap, and communicating on a regular basis, as a government official has ever been.
His latest announcement, which awards $60 million in research grants for health IT, is another piece of the puzzle for the success of EHR adoption. The four awardees - University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Mayo Clinic of Medicine and Harvard University - are well-respected educational institutions. Their participation should garner more trust in the overall program.
Blumenthal and ONC are doing all the right things to make this work. They should be commended for their efforts in this very complex transformation.
