The trend across the United States is to find a way to make the
health care system more efficient. Popular thought is that the
health care system needs to deliver safer, higher-quality care in a
more cost-effective manner. The magic bullet is to develop a
standardized, secure electronic health information infrastructure
that ensures health care providers have access to clinically
relevant information at the point of care. These goals, if met,
have the potential to benefit all of the stakeholders in the health
care system - payers, providers, and consumers. The 80
th
Legislature considered a number of proposals, two of which passed
that have a significant impact on medicine.
Statewide Entity Created to Develop Infrastructure for
Electronic Health Records
House Bill 1066 by Rep. Diane Delisi (R-Temple) and Sen. Jane
Nelson (R-Lewisville) establishes the Texas Health Care Services
Authority. The authority would plan and coordinate the framework
for the development of a seamless and interoperable electronic
health record system. The entity will lay the groundwork by
bringing together public and private stakeholders in a partnership
to foster common data standards, cooperative arrangements, and
interoperability. Oversight of the authority would consist of an
11-member Board of Directors appointed by the governor. The board
must include individuals representing consumers, clinical
laboratories, health benefit plans, hospitals, regional health
information exchange initiatives, pharmacies, physicians, rural
health providers, or other entities who possess expertise in any
other area the governor finds necessary for the successful
operation of the corporation.
EMR Interface With Immunization Registry
Senate Bill 204 by Senator Nelson and Representative Delisi would
require vendors selling, leasing, or providing an electronic
medical records software package to physicians to have the ability
to electronically interface and generate electronic reports
containing the fields necessary to populate the state's
immunization registry, ImmTrac.
HIT TMA Staff Team:
Legislative: Dan Finch
Policy: Michael Reed and Shannon Moore
Legal: C.J. Francisco and Lee Spangler
Overview
|
Managed Care/Insurance Reform
|
Scope of Practice
|
Retail Health Clinics
|
Responsible Ownership
|
Corporate Practice of Medicine
|
Health Care Funding
|
Medicaid, CHIP, and the
Uninsured
|
Public Health
|
Border Health
|
Mental Health
|
Emergency Medical Services and
Trauma Care
|
Rural Health
|
Medical Science and Quality
|
Physician Workforce, Licensure,
and Discipline
|
Prescription Drugs
|
Long-Term Care
|
Workers' Compensation
|
Abortion
|
Franchise Tax Reform
Last Updated On
July 23, 2010
Originally Published On
March 23, 2010