by Paul Roemer
Every wonder how the billions of dollars in healthcare IT came about? I imagine it went something like this:
DC Wonk 1: Email those fellows over at HHS and tell them we should just make the doctors install Electronic Health Records (EHR)!
DC Wonk 2: While we're at it, how about we pay them a bonus to do it?
DC 1: Yeah, and we could penalize them if they don't. We'll give 'em money with one hand and take it back with the other!
DC 2: How do we get EHRs to communicate?
DC 1: Heck, the state policy wonks can figure it out. They're looking for more money anyway.
DC 2: I'll email the governors and tell them we've got more billions to pass around. Let them build some sort of Information Exchange. They can set up committees and staff them with appointees.
DC 1: Then we can glue those together into some kind of national network. Where are we going to get one of those? Figure another ten billion for that.
DC 2: I'll email the DOD, they are supposed to know something about building national networks.
DC 1: Just to get things kick-started, let's email the troops and tell them we'll sweeten the state pots a little more. Get them to build these extension centers on a region-by-region basis.
So much money -- and so little value. Most of the incentive dollars are focused on trying to figure out how to get millions of health record data points from point A to point B.
But here's a chicken-and-egg question: How did the emails of these two wonks travel back and
forth securely? For a lot less than forty billion dollars, isn't it possible to figure out how to get my health information to whomever needs it?
While everyone is spending billions of dollars to develop a network that could send data from Point A to Point B, do they ever stop to realize that perhaps they're already using a network that could achieve this goal? (Hint: It's called the Internet.)
Email me, maybe we can come up with an idea for a network!
Paul Roemer is a healthcare strategist and the managing partner of Healthcare IT Strategy, which helps health care providers solve business problems using EHR, workflow improvement, and change management.
Every wonder how the billions of dollars in healthcare IT came about? I imagine it went something like this:
DC Wonk 1: Email those fellows over at HHS and tell them we should just make the doctors install Electronic Health Records (EHR)!
DC Wonk 2: While we're at it, how about we pay them a bonus to do it?
DC 1: Yeah, and we could penalize them if they don't. We'll give 'em money with one hand and take it back with the other!
DC 2: How do we get EHRs to communicate?
DC 1: Heck, the state policy wonks can figure it out. They're looking for more money anyway.
DC 2: I'll email the governors and tell them we've got more billions to pass around. Let them build some sort of Information Exchange. They can set up committees and staff them with appointees.
DC 1: Then we can glue those together into some kind of national network. Where are we going to get one of those? Figure another ten billion for that.
DC 2: I'll email the DOD, they are supposed to know something about building national networks.
DC 1: Just to get things kick-started, let's email the troops and tell them we'll sweeten the state pots a little more. Get them to build these extension centers on a region-by-region basis.
So much money -- and so little value. Most of the incentive dollars are focused on trying to figure out how to get millions of health record data points from point A to point B.
But here's a chicken-and-egg question: How did the emails of these two wonks travel back and
forth securely? For a lot less than forty billion dollars, isn't it possible to figure out how to get my health information to whomever needs it?
While everyone is spending billions of dollars to develop a network that could send data from Point A to Point B, do they ever stop to realize that perhaps they're already using a network that could achieve this goal? (Hint: It's called the Internet.)
Email me, maybe we can come up with an idea for a network!
Paul Roemer is a healthcare strategist and the managing partner of Healthcare IT Strategy, which helps health care providers solve business problems using EHR, workflow improvement, and change management.