WASHINGTON ­– The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology has issued a health IT strategic plan for 2011 through 2015 for public review.

 

The plan, mandated under the HITECH Act, includes an agenda developed by the ONC and other federal partners and leverages the work of the HIT Policy Committee, according to former National Coordinator David Blumenthal, MD.

 

“The adoption and meaningful use of EHRs is the unifying focal point of our strategy,” Blumenthal said.

Todd Park, chief technology officer at the Department of Health and Human Services, encouraged those on the front line to make their opinions known. “The more folks engage in the public conversation about the plan, the better it will become,” he said.

 

According to the 80-page strategic plan, some of the ONC’s goals include achieving health information exchange through meaningful use of electronic health records, improving population health and reducing healthcare costs, inspiring public trust in health IT and empowering individuals to improve their health and the healthcare system.

 

As of April 7, some 45 people had commented on the ONC website specifically designated for that purpose through April 22. Some of the commenters' concerns include:

 

·      The ONC may not have done an extensive enough review of available standards for vocabularies used in data exchange.

·      When clinicians buy EHR products, they marry a database structure, for better or worse. The cost of new products and data migration is prohibitive.

·      If a system does not follow the flow of the clinical work, it will likely not be adopted and will not be used to achieve meaningful use criteria.

·      Competitive advantage is an important point. Doctors can still see more patients per day and at less cost by using paper.

 

“The adoption and meaningful use of EHRs is the unifying focal point of our strategy.”