CHIME Statement on the Markup of the 21st Century Cures Initiative

Statement from CHIME Interim Vice President of Public Policy, Leslie Krigstein

ANN ARBOR, MI, May 13, 2015 – Interoperability is a complex, multifaceted problem that will only improve when we have a standardized approach for collecting and sharing data, but that can only occur once a patient has been positively identified. Despite the Energy & Commerce Committee’s efforts to evaluate and enhance health information exchange, CHIME is disappointed that the Committee failed to include language recognizing the ongoing challenge posed by the inability to match patients across care settings.

Increasing access to patient data alone will not translate into better patient care. We would encourage the Committee to emphasize both the need to increase access and exchange health information, along with the value of being able to use the data to improve care. The root cause of inoperable systems, the universal lack of standardization in healthcare data capture and exchange, remains largely unaddressed beyond the Committee’s deference to the proposed Charter Organization. Data integrity and reliability will continue to be an issue impeding interoperability as long as the wide-scale adoption of clear, enforceable standards remains absent.

Further, we remind the Committee that the success of the Meaningful Use program, as measured by the successful participation of hospitals and providers, will ultimately impact the status of nationwide interoperability. We hope this legislation serves a spring board for further conversation to bolster provider use of health information technology.

About CHIME
The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) is an executive organization dedicated to serving chief information officers and other senior healthcare IT leaders. With more than 1,400 CIO members and over 140 healthcare IT vendors and professional services firms, CHIME provides a highly interactive, trusted environment enabling senior professional and industry leaders to collaborate; exchange best practices; address professional development needs; and advocate the effective use of information management to improve the health and healthcare in the communities they serve. For more information, please visit www.chimecentral.org.

Contact
Stephanie Fraser
Director of Communications and Corporate Relations, CHIME
734-665-0000
[email protected]