Privacy wins in Obama’s $19 Bil EMR Plan

Bloomberg News  reports that patients’ rights proponents won in their victory to defeat the Senate version of the stimulus package which allowed for looser privacy standards. 

The report also provided the following details:

• $2 Billion in grants to creat a national system of computerized health records
• $17 Billion in higher CMS payments for doctors and hospitals to adapt the technology.
• Doctors would be eligible for $40,000 to $65,000 in grants if they began using EMR technology.
• Penalties for those who fail to adapt the systems would begin in 2014.
• The bill also tightens restrictions on the sale of medical data.

To read the entire report, click here:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aOQrsih0y1BU&refer=home

The plan includes both incentives and penalties.  Do you think government intervention will help or hurt HIM departments or hospitals in the long run?

How will this affect you?

Feel free to comment below:

Tags: EMR, Federal Government, Obama, Stimulus