Leading Tech Group Endorses Enzi-Kennedy Health IT Bill
06.30.2005
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Information Technology Industry Council (ITI), a coalition of 32 top high-tech companies, endorsed the bipartisan health care information technology legislation introduced today by Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Chairman Mike Enzi (R-WY) and Ranking Member Edward Kennedy (D-MA). ITI is widely recognized as the tech industry's most effective lobbying organization in Washington and its members met with Enzi yesterday to discuss his legislation.
“The adoption of new technology in health care is the single most important step that can be taken to reduce costs and improve quality,” ITI President and CEO Rhett Dawson said. “Senators Enzi and Kennedy have taken the best ideas offered for health IT and created a package that I predict will ultimately pass the Senate overwhelmingly.”
Enzi and Kennedy’s legislation takes several steps toward bolstering health IT, including protecting the privacy of health information; codifying the Administration-created Office of the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology; codifying Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt’s recently announced American Health Information Collaborative, to identify uniform national data standards; and awarding matching grants to states, health care providers and academics.
Enzi and Kennedy were joined today by Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Max Baucus (D-MT), the leaders of the Senate Finance Committee, who introduced companion health IT legislation dealing with Medicare reimbursements and tax incentives.
Earlier this year, the House and Senate approved a Health Information Technology Reserve Fund as part of the FY 2006 Budget Resolution, which will allow committees of jurisdiction in the House and Senate to adjust allocations for Medicare and Medicaid entitlement programs in order to encourage health IT investment, so long as these adjustments do not increase the federal budget deficit for fiscal years 2006 through 2010.
Health IT facts:
- Widespread adoption of health IT can reduce health costs by as much as $140 billion a year.
- An estimated 45,000-98,000 people die every year from hospital medical errors -- more than motor vehicle accidents or breast cancer.
- The U.S. spends over $300 billion a year on the wrong treatments and up to $150 billion on administrative waste.
- In 2002, only 13% of hospitals and between 14% and 28% of doctors’ offices reported using electronic health records.
ABOUT ITI
The Information Technology Industry Council (ITI) is an elite group of 32 top high-tech companies and is widely recognized as the tech industry's most effective lobbying organization in Washington. ITI helps member companies achieve their policy objectives through building relationships with Members of Congress, Administration officials, and foreign governments; organizing industry-wide consensus on policy issues; and working to enact tech-friendly government policies.
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