House passes bill encouraging health IT

Lawmakers now must reconcile differences between the House and Senate legislation over anti-kickback safe harbors, health IT grant levels and a new coding system.

By David Glendinning, AMNews staff. Aug. 14, 2006.

Washington -- The House late last month approved legislation that would enable physicians to buy and receive donations of health information technology more easily.

But some doctors worry thatit would also force them to adopt a new diagnostic coding system without nearly enough lead time.

The Health Information Technology Promotion Act of 2006 passed the House on July 27 by a largely party-line vote of 270-148.

After Congress returns in September from its month-long summer recess, conferees from both houses will attempt to resolve the differences between the House bill and the Wired for Health Care Quality Act, a different version of the health IT bill that passed the Senate last year.

The American Medical Association supported the House bill as a whole and welcomed its passage. It has not taken an official position on the Senate measure.

The House legislation "is an important step forward to enhance physician access to health information technology," said AMA Board Chair Cecil B. Wilson, MD.

"The AMA shares widespread optimism over the promise that health information technology holds for improving patient care, if properly developed, implemented and financed," Dr. Wilson said.

But one of the provisions of the measure that has received less praise from doctors is a requirement that hospitals and physician offices upgrade to the ICD-10 coding system from the current ICD-9 system. (This bill has no impact on the CPT codes physician offices use to let payers know what treatments they administer.)