What’s standing in the way of the wider spread of health IT? Plenty of things, according to a new report from the Bipartisan Policy Center. The report says boosting use of electronic medical records and other health IT “enjoys bipartisan support.” It’s also being pushed by billions of dollars in government incentives . The assumption is that health IT can help improve health outcomes, improve the experience of care and save money. But there are gaps and barriers to its effective use, the report says. Among them: a lack of health information exchange. In other words, hospitals and doctors can’t easily swap patient records and other data electronically. An easier exchange of records and test results is expected to lower costs by reducing duplication of services. Patients aren’t yet widely using electronic tools to manage their care or coordinate with a physician or other health-care provider, the report says. For example, surveys show that only 7% to 11% of Americans

currently use some form of online personal health record. Consumers are also worried about privacy and security, the report says, recommending that “all entities that access, use and disclose consumers’ personal health information should be required to comply with privacy and security requirements that are at least as comprehensive as those applicable to entities covered under HIPAA,” the federal medical privacy rule. The Bipartisan Policy Center’s task force that put together the report was co-chaired by former Sens. Bill Frist and Tom Daschle. It includes David Blumenthal, the Obama administration’s former top health IT official , and representatives from physician groups and the IT and insurance industries, among others. In November, the Institute of Medicine issued a report that recommended setting up an independent federal entity akin to the National Transportation Safety Board to investigate deaths, serious injuries or unsafe conditions associated with health IT. Image: iStockphoto

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What Are the Obstacles to Digital Health Records?