RSSAmerican Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (excerpt)
H.R.1
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
(Engrossed as Agreed to or Passed by House)
`SEC. 3001. OFFICE OF THE NATIONAL COORDINATOR FOR HEALTH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY.
- `(a) Establishment- There is established within the Department of Health and Human Services an Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (referred to in this section as the `Office’). The Office shall be headed by a National Coordinator who shall be appointed by the Secretary and shall report directly to the Secretary.
- `(b) Purpose- The National Coordinator shall perform the duties under subsection (c) in a manner consistent with the development of a nationwide health information technology infrastructure that allows for the electronic use and exchange of information and that–
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- `(1) ensures that each patient’s health information is secure and protected, in accordance with applicable law;
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- `(2) improves health care quality, reduces medical errors, reduces health disparities, and advances the delivery of patient-centered medical care;
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- `(3) reduces health care costs resulting from inefficiency, medical errors, inappropriate care, duplicative care, and incomplete information;
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- `(4) provides appropriate information to help guide medical decisions at the time and place of care;
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- `(5) ensures the inclusion of meaningful public input in such development of such infrastructure;
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- `(6) improves the coordination of care and information among hospitals, laboratories, physician offices, and other entities through an effective infrastructure for the secure and authorized exchange of health care information;
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- `(7) improves public health activities and facilitates the early identification and rapid response to public health threats and emergencies, including bioterror events and infectious disease outbreaks;
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- `(8) facilitates health and clinical research and health care quality;
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- `(9) promotes prevention of chronic diseases;
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- `(10) promotes a more effective marketplace, greater competition, greater systems analysis, increased consumer choice, and improved outcomes in health care services; and
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- `(11) improves efforts to reduce health disparities.
- `(c) Duties of the National Coordinator-
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- `(1) STANDARDS- The National Coordinator shall review and determine whether to endorse each standard, implementation specification, and certification criterion for the electronic exchange and use of health information that is recommended by the HIT Standards Committee under section 3003 for purposes of adoption under section 3004. The Coordinator shall make such determination, and report to the Secretary such determination, not later than 45 days after the date the recommendation is received by the Coordinator.
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- `(2) HIT POLICY COORDINATION-
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- `(A) IN GENERAL- The National Coordinator shall coordinate health information technology policy and programs of the Department with those of other relevant executive branch agencies with a goal of avoiding duplication of efforts and of helping to ensure that each agency undertakes health information technology activities primarily within the areas of its greatest expertise and technical capability and in a manner towards a coordinated national goal.
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- `(B) HIT POLICY AND STANDARDS COMMITTEES- The National Coordinator shall be a leading member in the establishment and operations of the HIT Policy Committee and the HIT Standards Committee and shall serve as a liaison among those two Committees and the Federal Government.
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- `(3) STRATEGIC PLAN-
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- `(A) IN GENERAL- The National Coordinator shall, in consultation with other appropriate Federal agencies (including the National Institute of Standards and Technology), update the Federal Health IT Strategic Plan (developed as of June 3, 2008) to include specific objectives, milestones, and metrics with respect to the following:
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- `(i) The electronic exchange and use of health information and the enterprise integration of such information.
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- `(ii) The utilization of an electronic health record for each person in the United States by 2014.
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- `(iii) The incorporation of privacy and security protections for the electronic exchange of an individual’s individually identifiable health information.
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- `(iv) Ensuring security methods to ensure appropriate authorization and electronic authentication of health information and specifying technologies or methodologies for rendering health information unusable, unreadable, or indecipherable.
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- `(v) Specifying a framework for coordination and flow of recommendations and policies under this subtitle among the Secretary, the National Coordinator, the HIT Policy Committee, the HIT Standards Committee, and other health information exchanges and other relevant entities.
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- `(vi) Methods to foster the public understanding of health information technology.
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- `(vii) Strategies to enhance the use of health information technology in improving the quality of health care, reducing medical errors, reducing health disparities, improving public health, and improving the continuity of care among health care settings.
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- `(B) COLLABORATION- The strategic plan shall be updated through collaboration of public and private entities.
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- `(C) MEASURABLE OUTCOME GOALS- The strategic plan update shall include measurable outcome goals.
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- `(D) PUBLICATION- The National Coordinator shall republish the strategic plan, including all updates.
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One Response to “American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (excerpt)”
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July 3rd, 2009 at 7:20 am
This needs some tweeking. This office, if it is to remain, should stick only to technology and how it can improve the dissemination of information and education of the people and their doctors.
I think the wording just needs to be clearer where there is any question of this office meddling in health care ie “improving quality of health care”. Technology cannot improve the quality of health care.
I want Single Payer, anyway.