On Daschle, expectations

WASHINGTON – In the wake of the election, Washington and healthcare stakeholders nationwide waited with bated breath to hear President-elect Barack Obama’s nomination for the next Department of Health and Human Services secretary.

The Nov. 19 nomination of former Sen. Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) seemed to strike the right chord and earn mostly praise.

Daschle is considered a strong proponent of healthcare reform and a capable bipartisan negotiator. Yet, there are those lingering questions. How much of a priority will he make healthcare IT? And more importantly, will he scrap the work that has already been done and start over? Millions of dollars are at stake for the electronic health record companies that have already invested in certifying their products.

HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt, finishing up the last few days of a term that began Jan. 26, 2005, deserves praise as a healthcare IT visionary. Daschle will have no small shoes to fill.

Under Leavitt’s leadership a federal advisory panel, the American Health Information Community, held 25 public meetings, all attended by Leavitt. Its 176 workgroups came up with 200 recommendations for Leavitt on how to advance healthcare IT. Under Leavitt’s direction, AHIC helped to develop a standards-based certification process that has now certified  more than 75 percent of the inpatient electronic health record market.

Though healthcare IT advancement is a bipartisan issue, Leavitt’s efforts were from the Republican camp. Some key Democrat lawmakers have eyed the notion of scrapping the Republican efforts for a new Democratic plan. No one will say for sure how much scrapping would be done, and it remains to be seen if any lawmaker could get such a notion through Congress. President-elect Obama has vowed $10 billion a year toward healthcare IT advancement, but he has not outlined the details of his plan yet.

Daschle, who awaits Senate approval, should have some wind in his sails when he starts work. Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and ranking Republican Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) of the influential Senate Finance Committee have already begun a push for pay-for-performance on hospital inpatient care under Medicare. Care will be measured through healthcare IT.

The word from the public is healthcare reform. They voted for it, they want it. Almost unquestionably, stakeholders agree healthcare IT will be instrumental. Former speaker of the House and founder of the Center for Health Transformation Newt Gingrich expressed confidence in Daschle’s commitment to a fully electronic health system.

“Health-based health reform should encourage and incentivize the adoption of best practices that save lives and save money,” Gingrich said. “It should call for every American to have an electronic health record by December 2012.”