The governor of Wisconsin has pledged $10 million in funding for eHealth records.
Following a growing trend, Wisconsin governor Jim Doyle has announced that his latest budget will include $10 million to increase the use of electronic medical record (EMR) systems. According to a recent survey from the US Medical Group Management Association (MGMA), the number of medical groups in the US using electronic health records (EHR) has more than doubled over the past two years. MGMA estimates that about 30% of US medical groups use some form of an EHR system. About 40% of MGMA survey respondents also stated that they plan to adopt EHRs within the next two years.
The increase in EHR adoption is set to continue with the emphasis President Bush and other high-level government officials have given to health information technology.
EHR systems that are implemented well should make patient information readily accessible by healthcare professionals and align this information with current care guidelines. The systems should serve to prevent medical errors, personalize treatment and reduce unnecessary or duplicate procedures. EHR systems can also facilitate communication between healthcare providers as well as between providers and payers.
The wider implementation of EHR will open the doors for the increased adoption of other technologies, particularly electronic prescribing. ePrescribing technologies were originally seen by pharmaceutical marketers as an ideal point-of-care marketing tool. However, long-standing conflicts of interest among a number of stakeholders in ePrescribing and the recent introduction of prohibitive legislation have limited its use as a marketing platform.
In spite of this, pharmaceutical companies should not entirely relinquish the opportunity to play a role in the adoption of ePrescribing. To retain a strong presence during the prescribing process, pharmaceutical companies should encourage the development of ePrescribing services and help physicians adopt the technology by partnering with vendors and providing support for pilot programs.
