The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society opposes parts of a broad health IT bill (HR 6898) introduced earlier this month by House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee Chair Pete Stark (D-Calif.), Modern Healthcare reports (DoBias, Modern Healthcare, 9/26).
In a letter to Stark and subcommittee ranking member Rep. David Camp (R-Mich.), leaders of HIMSS stated that they opposed the creation of a new advisory committee and government development of an open-source health IT system (Health Data Management, 9/26).
In the letter, HIMSS President and CEO H. Stephen Lieber and Board Chair Charles Christian, wrote that the association "believes the legislation has negative consequences" (Modern Healthcare, 9/26).
The letter stated that the bill could "dismantle the work that the federal government and private sector have already achieved" by replacing the American Heath Information Community with a new federal advisory group. The letter added that the development of an open-source health IT system "is not the role of the federal government and such product development should remain in the private sector."
The legislation, designed to create a nationwide electronic health record system, is set for early action in the next Congressional session (CongressDaily, 9/26).