Clearly US Stimulus Package for HIT ($19.2B) shows there is a strong desire to get codified patient data moving in an electronic form, but why is it going to work? Are providers really going to be interested in letting that cost savings impact their share holders? Will the short-term incentives really going to allow providers to see a new value proposition emerge where they can start new revenue streams (e.g., telehealth/telemonitoring)? How does anyone limit their spending of Stimulus money on the mandated migration to ICD-10 and ANSI X12 5010 transactions? Frankly, it’s too early to tell, but it will be interesting to start hearing what folks are planning. HIMSS could be especially interesting this year…maybe not the presentations or even the vendor booth…

One other thought on this topic of why is the Stimulus Package for HIT a good idea: has anyone thought that maybe there are other purposes for this increased flow of computable health data? While there are obvious benefits for the pharmaceuticals, the opportunity for more complete evidence based analysis over a larger population will likely give all-seeing payers the ability to identify which treatments are yielding the best clinical results. Will that lead to a new way to influence care? Will Medicare and Medicaid continue to pay for treatments that are not as effective as those that are deemed to be the best? Is the Obama Administration that clever?

Keep watch for those unintended consequences, that’s where it will be interesting. In the mean time, don’t hesitate to propose for those grant moneys and loans when they come available in 2010…assuming the economy has turned by then.