Suzanne Columbus
November 26th, 2007, 12:25 PM
Leavitt: Mandate E-Prescribing (http://www.healthdatamanagement.com/news/electronic_prescriptions_mandates25221-1.html)</EM>
Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt on his Weblog has endorsed electronic prescribing for Medicare and beyond. Leavitt did not announce a formal policy change, but indicated where he is headed and where others should head.
Read the full story » (http://www.healthdatamanagement.com/news/electronic_prescriptions_mandates25221-1.html) Email this story » (http://www.healthdatamanagement.com/cgi-bin/udt/im.send.story.prompt?client_id=healthdatamanagemen t_issues&story_id=25221)
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Leavitt: Mandate E-Prescribing
November 21, 2007
Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt on his Weblog has endorsed electronic prescribing for Medicare and beyond. Leavitt did not announce a formal policy change, but indicated where he is headed and where others should head.
“E-prescribing needs faster implementation,” Leavitt wrote. “We have been through all the public processes necessary to develop standards. The technology is readily available and widely distributed. Electronic prescribing will enhance the safety and convenience for patients. Large health care providers, including Medicare and Medicaid, need to move toward making it a mandatory part of medical practice soon.”
Leavitt recalled riding with state troopers as Governor of Utah and being shocked at how much time they spent on paperwork after drunk driving arrests. He subsequently ordered laptops in patrol cars and an electronic system to process documentation. But many officers couldn’t use computers, and some were resistant to learning, he wrote. “Ultimately, I had to say, ‘Look, we are at a point where we can’t afford to have people on the highway patrol who can’t type. If you want to work here, you need to develop the skill to fill out reports efficiently using a computer. We’ll help you learn but this is now a requirement of the job,’” he wrote.
For several years, he wrote, physicians have been nudged to e-prescribe, but the adoption rate remains low, and the government should “use its power as a payer to motivate the change.”
Secretary Leavitt’s blog is available at http://secretarysblog.hhs.gov.
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Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt on his Weblog has endorsed electronic prescribing for Medicare and beyond. Leavitt did not announce a formal policy change, but indicated where he is headed and where others should head.
Read the full story » (http://www.healthdatamanagement.com/news/electronic_prescriptions_mandates25221-1.html) Email this story » (http://www.healthdatamanagement.com/cgi-bin/udt/im.send.story.prompt?client_id=healthdatamanagemen t_issues&story_id=25221)
Registration is required to read the story
Leavitt: Mandate E-Prescribing
November 21, 2007
Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt on his Weblog has endorsed electronic prescribing for Medicare and beyond. Leavitt did not announce a formal policy change, but indicated where he is headed and where others should head.
“E-prescribing needs faster implementation,” Leavitt wrote. “We have been through all the public processes necessary to develop standards. The technology is readily available and widely distributed. Electronic prescribing will enhance the safety and convenience for patients. Large health care providers, including Medicare and Medicaid, need to move toward making it a mandatory part of medical practice soon.”
Leavitt recalled riding with state troopers as Governor of Utah and being shocked at how much time they spent on paperwork after drunk driving arrests. He subsequently ordered laptops in patrol cars and an electronic system to process documentation. But many officers couldn’t use computers, and some were resistant to learning, he wrote. “Ultimately, I had to say, ‘Look, we are at a point where we can’t afford to have people on the highway patrol who can’t type. If you want to work here, you need to develop the skill to fill out reports efficiently using a computer. We’ll help you learn but this is now a requirement of the job,’” he wrote.
For several years, he wrote, physicians have been nudged to e-prescribe, but the adoption rate remains low, and the government should “use its power as a payer to motivate the change.”
Secretary Leavitt’s blog is available at http://secretarysblog.hhs.gov.
Decision Support Archive
Electronic Health Records Archive
Medication Management Archive
Policies/Regulation Archive
Hospitals Archive
Group Practices Archive
Payers Archive