Meaningful Use
The Vermont Healthcare and Information Technology Education Center (HITEC) has received $2 million in funding for the state's workforce development training project, which seeks to match unemployed and underemployed Vermonters with their future employers.
No matter what happens politically or in policy circles, "seismic shifts" are going to occur in healthcare, and IT needs to be a major part of reshaping the landscape, according to H. Stephen Lieber, president and CEO of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS).
The Bipartisan Policy Center's Health Project has launched a Task Force on Delivery System Reform and Health IT. The Task Force, co-chaired by former Senate Majority Leaders Tom Daschle and Bill Frist, now co-leaders of the Health Project, includes 24 health system experts and leaders.
Sometimes what may seem like a small expense – $3,700 – can make all the difference to patients in need of care, but with no insurance or means to get it.
"Historically, telehealth hasn't received the attention that it's deserved from the federal government," says Neal Neuberger, executive director of the Institute for e-Health Policy and president of Health Tech Strategies. A case in point is the government's meaningful use program.
Farzad Mostashari, MD, may be optimistic about the promise of healthcare information technology, but when he spoke April 26 at the Bipartisan Policy Center, he also warned of challenges ahead.
Presidential candidates are beginning to line up in the past month, as more Republicans declared their intentions of running. Several of them have strong ties to health IT.
The Department of Health and Human Services has launched two programs aimed at improving healthcare and reducing costs. Both rely heavily on healthcare IT.
It’s hard to tap the brakes – even ever so slightly – to an initiative like the government’s meaningful use program.
With hospitals "raising the bar" to meet meaningful use requirements, new positions are being created within IT departments that have a focus on quality and data, says one consultant.