The Health & Human Services Department awarded public relations firm Ketchum Inc. a contract for $26 million to create a publicity campaign to educate the public about the privacy and security of their personal information contained in or managed by health IT systems.
The HITECH Act called for public education efforts to help drive the adoption and meaningful use of electronic health records. .
Led by HHS' Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT and the Office of Civil Rights, the campaign will direct a series of communications at consumers, patients and healthcare providers to build awareness of and participation in health IT adoption and health information exchange.
Over the two-year contract, New York-based Ketchum will also purchase advertising, stoke media interest and generate Web contentm, briefings and reports.
