HHS released its Federal Health IT Strategic Plan March 27, addressing the agency's plans to modernize national public health data infrastructure and promote interoperability with EHRs.
The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology worked with 25 federal agencies to draft the plan with guidance on regulating, purchasing, developing and using health IT in care delivery. The plan aims to promote interoperability so patients have control of electronic health information outside of the hospital or physician's office, promote safe artificial intelligence use, and more.
The plan's four strategic goals include:
1. Promote health and wellness.
2. Enhance the delivery and experience of care.
3. Accelerate research and innovation.
4. Connect the health system with health data.
HHS noted more than 30,600 healthcare facilities are sending electronic initial case reports to public health agencies as of last December, which is part of the CDC's data modernization initiative.
The VA will also use the plan's guidance as it rolls out EHRs systemwide.
"As the VA modernizes its electronic health record system, the draft 2024-2030 Federal Health IT Strategic Plan provides direction towards a seamless health care experience that helps patients and providers benefit from a connected health system," said Meg Marshall, director of informatics regulatory affairs at the Veterans Health Administration. "Not only that, the draft Federal Health IT Strategic Plan serves as an actionable roadmap for the federal government to align and coordinate health IT efforts in a transparent and accountable manner."
The federal government also commits to providing resources for healthcare organizations to prevent cyberattacks and improve system resiliency. The American Hospital Association applauded HHS' efforts to include voluntary cybersecurity performance goals within the five year plan in a blog post, but is critical of its decision to support mandatory cybersecurity requirements for hospitals exclusively based on a Dec. 6 concept paper.
"HHS' repeated references to this concept paper demonstrates the logically flawed emphasis on hospitals as the primary source of cyber risk in health care," said John Riggi, AHA's national advisor for cybersecurity and risk, in a statement on the AHA's website. "To make meaningful progress in the war on cybercrime, the federal government must be willing to take a strategic and holistic approach to this national security threat, not focusing on just one facet of the healthcare sector — hospitals. Any defensive strategy imposed on the healthcare sector must also be accompanied by an equally aggressive offensive cyber strategy by the government to counter the true source of cyber risk — foreign bad guys."
Public comments on the plan are open through May 28.