Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) last month introduced a bill (S.2421) to encourage the adoption of electronic health records. Kennedy's bill would require final standards for EHR interoperability by 2006. It would provide grants, loans and loan guarantees for implementation to providers, as well as larger reimbursements for hospitals and other facilities that computerize their records (Hawryluk, American Medical News, 6/14). To qualify, the IT systems would have to meet performance standards, including interoperability. Within seven years of the bill's enactment, insurers would have to implement systems that accept claims over the Internet, adjudicate them in real-time and support several other automated billing functions. Providers that implement EHRs would receive higher reimbursements from federal health programs, but beginning in 2011, those that don't use EHRs would receive lower payments.
(The AMC/NOMA, like other physician groups, is supportive of electronic health records, however, there is concern about who will pay for the technology. Health insurers should provide financial incentives to accomplish this goal - or perhaps the funds should come from the government.)