The US stimulus plan includes $19 billion to modernize the healthcare information technology. I spent four years in the healthcare IT area, first designing patient management systems for hospitals in Germany and then working on public health applications in Canada. During this time I learned a few simple truths
- Data interchange costs in healthcare are not really that high relative to expenditures on medical procedures, and
- Most medical professionals prefer spending their time on patients; they want less technology, not more.
In my mind, what we need is more preventive care, e.g. regular checkups for the uninsured. Emergency treatment of acute problems is where the inefficiencies are. Now, if this government program would be used to drive people to have healthier lifestyles (do regular checkups, exercise), I could see how this project would pay for itself. I recently came accross the WalkMe HeatlhVault app which nudges you to walk more. They fully deserve to be the beneficiaries of the planned government spend.
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