WASHINGTON – The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) issued an initial draft of its health IT strategic framework on Tuesday.

The document covers the strategic themes, principles, objectives, and strategies ONC plans to address in its 2010 strategic plan. The draft, marked "pre-decisional," and "do not distribute," can be found on the ONC website.

Over the next two months, ONC workgroups and federal advisory committees will refine the strategic framework into an official plan.

ONC is mandated under the HITECH Act to consult with federal agencies, to update the Federal Health IT Strategic Plan published in June 2008. The 2008 Strategic Plan focused on the 2008 to 2012 timeframe and was intended "to guide the nationwide implementation of interoperable health information technology in both the public and private health care sectors that will reduce medical errors, improve quality, and produce greater value for health care expenditures."

The first goal listed on the 2010 framework is to "develop, monitor, and maintain a progressive meaningful-use roadmap – from data capture and exchange, to advanced clinical processes, to improvement in health outcomes."