12 things Hillary Clinton said about health IT
Current Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton keynoted HIMSS14 and the speech gave a glimpse into her thinking about health IT.
Clinton spoke about important health issues including evidence-based medicine, innovative technology advancements, big data, quality outcomes and transitioning away from fee-for-service, among other topics.
Today, of course, Clinton is in the race and healthcare is among the pressing issues she must battle Republican nominee Donald Trump over between now and election day.
Here are 12 quotes from Clinton’s HIMSS14 speech:
1. “I really wanted to come to thank you for your efforts – every day – to modernize America’s healthcare system, to empower patients, provide information and support to medical professionals put the best information technology to work improving outcomes and reducing costs.”
2. “We know that we are seeing advances in medical technology, innovative ways of thinking about how we deliver care and, of course, how to implement the Affordable Care Act. And, your focus on health IT is such a big part of how this story ends.”
3. “Right now we know that IT is helping to increase efficiency and save money and improve quality of care and that HIMSS and so many of you have been doing this now for more than half a century. It must be a little bit gratifying for you to see the debate catch up with where you have been.”
4. “For me, it is reassuring that we can make progress together, driven by innovation and creativity.”
5. “If you’re in the middle of a medical emergency, accessing information quickly literally can make the difference between life and death. The peace of mind that comes with that is priceless.”
6. “None of this is possible without the right infrastructure, and the right regulatory environment and the right talent and the right attitude.”
[Also: Precision medicine: Analytics, data science and EHRs in the new age]
7. “I am a believer in the idea that good data helps to make for good decisions. That’s true in medicine, it’s true in business, it’s true in government; it’s true in life. I think it’s important to be guided by evidence about what works and what doesn’t – not ideology or past practices or personally held beliefs.”
8. “Unfortunately, we’ve seen too often in Washington that many of our public debates take place in an evidence-free zone.”
9. “We need more transparency in our healthcare system; we need to drive improvements in health IT; we need to make it easier to get data on how much treatments actually cost and how effective they are so providers, payers and consumers all can make better decisions.”
10. “I’m also very excited about the millions of Americans who are now receiving preventive care – something that I believe in, as I know you do.”
11. “What you have here as part of the assemblage of experts and expertise is information that is so critical to how we’re going to improve those quality outcomes and save money and empower patients. I think that is one of the great missions that anyone can be part of.”
12. “Will advances in technology, combined with comparative effectiveness research continue providing patients and providers with more and better information about what works, what doesn’t and ways that will reduce cost and improve outcomes? And, ultimately, how might we replace once and for all our fee-for-service model with provider-led, communitywide care.”
Twitter: @Bernie_HITN
Email the writer: bernie.monegain@himssmedia.com
