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Industry Leaders Find Common Ground to Share “One Voice, One Vision”
Washington, D.C., September 14, 2009 – With 2009 designated by the current Administration as the Year of Healthcare Transformation, this year’s National Health IT Week (September 21-25, 2009) delivers a timely message on the potential for health information technology (IT) to enhance the national healthcare system. National Health IT Week, a collaborative forum, serves as a neutral platform upon which public and private healthcare constituents —vendors, provider organizations, payers, pharmaceutical/biotech companies, government agencies, industry/professional associations, research foundations, and consumer protection groups — can raise awareness about the value of health IT among industry leaders and policymakers. More than 150 partners have dedicated their time and resources to elevating the dialogue surrounding health IT, which is gaining broad-scale attention within the context of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and healthcare reform.
In its fourth year, National Health IT Week 2009 participants partner to inform the nation’s policymakers about the importance of fostering widespread health IT adoption to improve patient safety and healthcare quality. For their part, in years past, both the House and the Senate have passed resolutions expressing support for the designation and goals of “National Health Information Technology Week.”
“Since 2009, organizations across the country have come together to support National Health Information Technology Week and its goals to improve public awareness regarding the potential benefits of improved quality and cost efficiency,” said Congressman Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), Co-chair, 21st Century Health Care Caucus and moderator of the National Health IT Week News Conference on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, Sept. 22 at 11 a.m. “Imagine what we could achieve for our nation’s healthcare system by implementing even a few health information technology initiatives.”
The federal government is already an advocate for increased use of HIT. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act includes more than $20 billion to aid in the development of a robust IT infrastructure for healthcare and to assist providers and other entities in adopting and using health IT.
Scheduled to speak on Capitol Hill at the National Health IT Week news conference about developments surrounding ARRA and healthcare reform are top Congressional leaders on healthcare, plus health IT industry leaders, including:
• Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), Co-chair, 21st Century Health Care Caucus
• Rep. Tim Murphy, PhD (R-PA), Co-chair, 21st Century Health Care Caucus
• Rep. Allyson Schwartz (D-PA)
• Rep. Phil Gingrey, MD (R-GA)
• Rep. Dennis Moore (D-KS)
• Rep. Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-TX)
• Sue Schade, CIO for Brigham and Women’s/Faulkner Hospitals (Boston, Mass.), on behalf of the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME)
• Barry P. Chaiken, MD, MPH, FHIMSS, HIMSS Board Chair
• Justin Barnes, Chairman, Electronic Health Record (EHR) Association
• H. Stephen Lieber, CAE, President & CEO, HIMSS
“Under the current paper system, when a person is traveling or in the case of emergency, doctors may not have immediate access to a patient’s paper medical records. Health IT brings the 18th century medical paper file system into 21st century medical care by providing crucial information in a secure and confidential manner in a matter of seconds. I am once again proud to be parti
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