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HealthUnity CEO testifies in front of congressional committee on health information technology systems Bellevue, WA - February 23, 2006 - HealthUnity Corporation CEO Prem Urali testified in a committee field hearing on health information technology systems (IT). The hearing was convened by Congressman David Wu (DOR), the ranking member of U.S. House Science Subcommittee on Environment, Technology and Standards (ETS)."In Oregon we have a critical mass of experts in the field of health care information technology," stated Congressman Wu. "This Subcommittee is here today to learn from the success stories of local start-ups" The purpose of the hearing was to learn about the potential benefits to healthcare providers and patients, while also ensuring privacy and security. Electronic health records (EHR) place a patient's medical history in one accessible location, rather than disconnected paper files throughout various healthcare systems. EHR's improve patient care and increase patient safety by reducing medicals errors. "Any approach needs to begin at a local or regional level by working from the ground up with clinicians and direct providers of healthcare," stated Prem Urali. "Without buy-in from the grassroots level, it doesn't matter who else is on board." To help foster a healthcare information technology infrastructure, the witnesses agreed the Federal Government should take three primary steps. First, the government should raise awareness about healthcare IT and its benefits to both patients and providers. Second, Congress should enact policies that create incentives for health care providers to implement the use of electronic healthcare records. And last, Federal regulatory agencies should create standards for healthcare IT systems so information can be easily transferred across disparate systems. Click here to learn more. |
