Congress urged to take health IT action

WASHINGTON, June 13 (UPI) -- A U.S. coalition of labor, businesses and seniors delivered a health IT wish list to Congress Wednesday.

The AARP, Business Roundtable and Service Employees International Union urged Congress to immediately pass legislation giving every American access to an effective and safe electronic health record.

"A secure, uniform, interoperable system that works for patients and providers will save time, stress and money," said AARP chief executive officer Bill Novelli. "We look to Congress to set a firm timetable for its implementation so we can begin saving lives and resources as soon as possible."

To help doctors and hospitals adopt the technology as quickly as possible, they should get federal help in the form of grants, loans, or tax credits, the groups said.

Research has shown that the current system of paper medical records can lead to harmful and costly medical errors. A 2005 report in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that as many as 98,000 Americans die each year because of medical errors.

Advocates and policymakers, including President Bush, have called for a national system of electronic records, but adoption of the expensive technology has been slow.

"The digital age has transformed virtually every other sector of the economy; it is time to bring the tremendous benefits of technology to our health care system by enacting health IT legislation," said John Castellani, president of the Business Roundtable, an organization of the CEOs of large employers.