Telehealth Monitor

A New England Journal of Medicine article calls for the establishment of an independent institute for technology assessment and says electronic health records could “appreciatively” boost quality of care.

“The Proposed Government Health Insurance Company – No Substitute for Real Reform, “ was written by Victor R. Fuchs, professor emeritus of economics at Stanford University in Stanford, Calif.

“Cost control requires fixed budgets for basic coverage so that expenditures and revenues are in balance, as well as a payment system for providers that gives incentives for cost-effective care,” Fuchs wrote. “It also requires an independent institute for technology assessment to provide physicians with needed information and to create a value-conscious environment for future biomedical innovations. Also, the average quality of care could be raised appreciably if every patient had access to an accountable care organization that used electronic health records effectively, provided coordinated care, and monitored processes and procedures.”

via EHRs could boost quality of care, according to New England Journal of Medicine | Healthcare IT News.