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Government: HIT advocates suggest grants, tax credits to fund adoption
EHR Connection, April 2, 2007
Advocates say Congress should fund targeted financial assistance programs that will enable physicians and other healthcare providers to adopt health information technology (HIT).
Speaking before the House Small Business Subcommittee on Regulation, Health Care and Trade earlier this week, Lynne M. Kirk, president of the American College of Physicians, recommended using a multifaceted strategy of federal grants, tax credits, loans, and additional Medicare payments to help fund HIT adoption, according to Congressional Quarterly. A 2006 review by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation found that only 13%-15% of solo practitioners were able to adopt HIT.
Subcommittee Chair Charlie Gonzalez (D-TX) said he plans to reintroduce legislation he sponsored in the 109th Congress that would provide tax incentives, grants, and subsidized loans to help small healthcare providers install and maintain HIT as part of their practices. However, some experts predict that existing bipartisan HIT legislation will be pushed aside this year as other legislative priorities, such as reauthorization of the State Children's Health Insurance Program and finding a way to prevent a scheduled 10% reduction in Medicare, will take precedence.
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