CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CCHIT is launching its first Summit, “The Decade of Health IT”, on February 26, 2014 at the HIMSS14 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Orlando, Fla. This discussion with newly appointed National Coordinator, Dr. Karen DeSalvo, and past National Coordinators Dr. David Brailer, Dr. Robert Kolodner, and Dr. Farzad Mostashari, will offer a critical look back at the last decade of health IT progress, with an opportunity for Summit participants to provide input on the desired role of health IT in the decade to come. The Summit will be moderated by Christopher Weaver, covering the business of health care for The Wall Street Journal.
“Last month CCHIT announced its plan to return to our independent work, convening stakeholders to engage in dialogue that will provide guidance to the healthcare community,” said Alisa Ray, CCHIT’s executive director. “With this inaugural Summit, we are delighted to be able to offer HIMSS14 Annual Conference attendees the opportunity to engage with this exceptional panel of national health IT leaders.”
Recognizing a substantial information gap between the potential benefits of medical knowledge and the reality of healthcare delivery, President George W. Bush announced in April 2004 a goal to provide most Americans with EHRs within the next 10 years to enable the transformation of healthcare. He appointed Dr. David Brailer to serve as the first National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. Soon after, a Framework for Strategic Action was released to guide that vision. As the decade closes on that work – a decade that now includes four successive National Coordinators and a significant increase in health IT policy making – CCHIT has invited the National Coordinators who have guided and implemented health IT policy to take stock. Dr. Karen DeSalvo will join past National Coordinators for that discussion.
The goal of the Summit is to highlight what worked, what more is needed, why we are where we are, and what we’ve learned that could improve chances of success for future policy makers, providers, consumers and the health IT industry. Participants of the Summit will share in the discussion and will be asked to directly contribute to creating guidance for future policy makers. More information is available at himssconference.org.
About HIMSS
HIMSS is a global, cause-based, not-for-profit organization focused on better health through information technology (IT). HIMSS leads efforts to optimize health engagements and care outcomes using information technology. Visit www.himss.org.
HIMSS is a cause-based, global enterprise producing health IT thought leadership, education, events, market research and media services around the world. Founded in 1961, HIMSS encompasses more than 52,000 individuals, of which more than two-thirds work in healthcare provider, governmental and not-for-profit organizations across the globe, plus over 600 corporations and 250 not-for-profit partner organizations, that share this cause. HIMSS, headquartered in Chicago, serves the global health IT community with additional offices in the United States, Europe, and Asia.
About CCHIT
CCHIT is an independent, not-for-profit organization with the public mission of accelerating the adoption of robust, interoperable health information technology (IT). The first U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recognized health IT certification body, CCHIT began certifying electronic health record technology in 2006 and has operated as an Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) authorized certification body since 2010. In alliance with HIMSS, CCHIT is developing new programs aimed at supporting change in the way providers and patients around the world use IT to positively transform health and healthcare. CCHIT is launching the first of those programs – its CCHIT Summit series – in 2014. Visit www.cchit.org.
