There's a near consensus that electronic medical records are a good idea, but some are now wary of investing government money in the technology. The reason is because of how the funding is defined in a current bill to be considered by Congress.
In the current bill before Congress, some doctors are eligible for bonus Medicare payments under certain circumstances. All they need to do is show that they have used electronic medical records in a 'meaningful' way. The term 'meaningful' is not defined in the bill, thus leaving things wide open for abuse and fraud. So some are justifiably balking at the bill as it is currently written.
House Minority Republicans recently voiced their concerns in a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Unfortunately, the $87 billion allocated for more Medicaid money for states doesn't appear to hold them accountable for ensuring that the tax dollars are spent wisely. Some in the health care industry agree.
There are also concerns from some that a sudden influx of funds will be too much too fast, which could cause the money to end up being wasted. That the health care system is broken is a well known fact. The pessimism shown by Republicans is not really surprising, considering all of the waste and inefficiencies in the system as it stands today.
Both sides have good arguments, and the issue does need to be address. If we spend money now on medical information technology with no oversight, then we will have wasted billions of dollars on a broken system that remains broken. However if we don't invest the money, then we will still be behind technologically. We will continue to follow the issue as it works its way through the legislature. - 15275
In the current bill before Congress, some doctors are eligible for bonus Medicare payments under certain circumstances. All they need to do is show that they have used electronic medical records in a 'meaningful' way. The term 'meaningful' is not defined in the bill, thus leaving things wide open for abuse and fraud. So some are justifiably balking at the bill as it is currently written.
House Minority Republicans recently voiced their concerns in a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Unfortunately, the $87 billion allocated for more Medicaid money for states doesn't appear to hold them accountable for ensuring that the tax dollars are spent wisely. Some in the health care industry agree.
There are also concerns from some that a sudden influx of funds will be too much too fast, which could cause the money to end up being wasted. That the health care system is broken is a well known fact. The pessimism shown by Republicans is not really surprising, considering all of the waste and inefficiencies in the system as it stands today.
Both sides have good arguments, and the issue does need to be address. If we spend money now on medical information technology with no oversight, then we will have wasted billions of dollars on a broken system that remains broken. However if we don't invest the money, then we will still be behind technologically. We will continue to follow the issue as it works its way through the legislature. - 15275
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