While many providers have decided to transition from paper records to EHRs, many others have not, and cost seems to be one of the main reasons for the reluctance.
That fact in mind, this regular observer raises an interesting question: Who should be paying for EHRs?
“EHRs are by and large a complex and expensive proposition,” she points out early on, “and the HITECH incentives are not covering the average cost of purchasing and maintaining an EHR. In survey after survey, physicians consistently rank cost associated with EHRs as their top concern when considering transition from paper charts to electronic medical records. This is a bit disconcerting, since physicians have no problem buying other expensive tools and paying for human resources in their practices. How are EHRs any different?”
She spends most of her time breaking the healthcare system into a few different categories and weighing their views, both pro and con, of the move to EHRs. More importantly, with each group she considers whether they should or would pick up the tab for EHRs.
For example, in a category she dubs “Secondary Stakeholders,” she says, “Here we find the drug and device manufacturers and the bewildering array of diagnostic facilities. Most of these companies are largely indifferent to what EHRs do and some stand to lose revenue when EHRs shine bright lights on spending patterns. They are not likely to consider paying anything for widespread EHR adoption. On the other hand, the mushrooming mobile health and personal health application providers, who base their entire existence on the availability and successful use of EHRs, show no willingness to share in the cost of computerizing medical records.”
We’ll let you read the rest of her ideas in their entirety, but here’s a hint as to who she thinks should ultimately be helping providers foot the cost of EHRs: “All stated goals of EHR adoption ultimately benefit patients.”
And, as always with this commentator, there are at least a few nuggets of insight in the comments section, too.
Let us know what you think.
