Main Street Urges Congress to Pass Health IT Legislation

Main Street Members Rep. Heather Wilson (R-NM) and Rep. Chris Shays (R-CT) Speak at Press Conference to Urge Congressional Action

Chris Barron
(202) 286-4533

(Washington, D.C.) – Yesterday, the Republican Main Street Partnership joined the Health IT Now! Coalition in urging Congress to immediately pass Healthcare Information Technology legislation. “Main Street is pleased to join with the members of the Health IT Now! Coalition in urging immediate Congressional action on this critical legislation,” said former U.S. Rep. and current Main Street President Charles F. Bass (R-NH).

Main Street members Rep. Heather Wilson (R-NM) and Rep. Chris Shays (R-CT) spoke at a press conference yesterday morning in the Capitol urging Congressional action. Wilson and Shays were joined by former U.S. Rep. and Main Street Board member Nancy Johnson (R-CT). Johnson is the current Co-Chair of the Health IT Now! Coalition and has long been a champion of healthcare information technology legislation.

“By passing Health IT legislation we can improve patient care and save the system tens of billions of dollars,” continued Bass. “Health IT legislation will provide doctors and others with accurate detailed and up-to-date health records and information, which will reduce the nearly 100,000 deaths each year due to medical errors.”

“Health IT legislation will not only improve care,” said Bass, “it will also save the system tens of billions of dollars.” According to a study by the Rand Corporation, health IT legislation could save the U.S. $81 billion annually. In fact, the efficiencies of health IT will decrease administrative expenses, increase the time doctors can spend with patients, lower health insurance premiums and save hundreds of billions of dollars nationally over the next decade.

Health IT can also serve to strengthen patient privacy. Under the current, paper-based system, there is no way to know someone reviews your medical file. Health IT would create an audit trail showing who tried to access medical records, when they made the attempt, and where.

“We join with the Health IT Now! Coalition in urging Congress to pass Health IT legislation this year that will establish a public-private process to determine standards for interoperability, product certification, quality measures and an accelerated process for standards improvement; create financial incentives for health care providers to adopt and use health IT; focus on consumer empowerment through patient and provider education about electronic health records; and guarantee privacy and security protections,” continued Bass.

“With the November elections looming, the window of opportunity is closing and the time for action is now,” concluded Bass.

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The Republican Main Street Partnership (RMSP) is dedicated to promoting and building a pragmatic, thoughtful, fiscally conservative, and inclusive “Governing Majority,” where political debate is encouraged to promote solutions to improve the lives of all Americans. Embracing the full spectrum of center-right ideologies and values in order to build coalitions, RMSP is the largest organization of elected leaders who are in the mold of Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, and Ronald Reagan. For more information on RMSP, visit our website at www.republicanmainstreet.org.