Americans Want Next President To Prioritize Health IT Efforts

More than half of U.S. residents think the next president should make health IT a top priority, according to a new survey sponsored by Kaiser Permanente, Healthcare IT News reports (Monegain, Healthcare IT News, 6/13).The survey, conducted in May by consulting firm StrategyOne, found that 73% of respondents said the value of EHRs outweighs the associated risks, up from 61% in 2007. In addition, the percentage of U.S. residents who have "seen, read or heard about" EHRs has increased from 43% in 2007 to 57% in 2008.The survey also found that:
65% of respondents said they have gone online to learn about a medical condition (Pulley, Government Health IT, 6/13);
61% of respondents said they prefer insurance companies that use EHRs;
47% said they prefer physicians who use EHRs; and
38% said they have used their insurers' online tools (Healthcare IT News, 6/13). Kaiser, which recently partnered with Microsoft on its personal health record platform, is calling on the health care industry to better educate consumers about the benefits of EHRs.

Source: iHealthbeat