Gordon Says Health IT Needed To Reduce Costs And Errors

June 4, 2008, WASHINGTON – At a congressional hearing examining how information technology can be incorporated into the health care industry, U.S. Rep. Bart Gordon said legislation is needed to reduce costs and errors for patients seeking care.

Today, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health held a hearing on draft legislation to determine how health information technology, or IT, can improve care while securing patients’ privacy.

“Electronic health care records have the potential to significantly reduce costs for both patients and providers,” said Gordon. “And it’s a demonstrated fact that a fully interoperable health IT system can improve patient care and make it easier for health care professionals to do their jobs better.

“Instead, we have a system today where most patients fill out multiple forms, repeat medical histories and recite lists of medications. The repetition wastes time and effort, and it’s risky because patients often do not or cannot keep accurate records, especially in emergency situations.”

According to a Tennessee eHealth Advisory Council study of the benefits of the Shared Health IT program for TennCare records, the technology cut emergency department costs per visit by 21 percent and helped patients get timely and proper care, resulting in 30 percent fewer services per emergency department visit.

Last year, Gordon introduced legislation, H.R. 2406, to authorize the National Institute of Standards and Technology to increase efforts to integrate the broad use of IT in America’s health care system. The House Science and Technology Committee, which Gordon chairs, approved that bill last fall, and those provisions are being incorporated into comprehensive health IT legislation being drafted by the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Gordon said NIST could help to alleviate a major reason for the delay in bringing IT to the health care industry – the lack of interoperable record systems that also ensure privacy and data security. NIST has assisted the banking, retail, manufacturing, telecom and financial services industries in developing technical standards to ensure the interoperability, security, and integrity of their IT systems.

“Doctors and hospitals are reluctant to invest money in systems that are not interoperable with systems owned by other health care providers,” said Gordon. “NIST can help the health care industry create interoperable systems that protect patients’ privacy and keep data secure.”