Officials at community clinics and other safety-net facilities are questioning whether they will be able to take advantage of the health IT funds in the federal economic stimulus package.
Although the stimulus package provides incentive payments for health care organizations that demonstrate "meaningful use" of electronic health records, some experts say it will be difficult for community clinics to generate the initial capital to purchase such systems.
In an iHealthBeat Special Report by Kelly Wilkinson, experts discussed the health IT challenges facing safety-net health care providers.
The Special Report includes comments from:
- Kathy Lim Ko, program director of the Community Clinics Initiative;
- Michael Lardiere, director of health IT for the National Association of Community Health Centers;
- Jane Stafford, managing director of the Community Clinics Initiative; and
- Winston Wong, medical director of community benefit for Kaiser Permanente's National Program Office.
Advocates say the government should develop strategies to help community clinics adopt and implement health IT systems (Wilkinson, iHealthBeat, 9/25).
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