U.S. Department of Health and Human Services secretary Kathleen Sebelius has announced the number of hospitals using health information technology has doubled in the last two years, according to a HHS news release.
Ms. Sebelius' announcement details data from a new survey conducted by the American Hospital Association, which found the percentage of U.S. hospitals that had adopted electronic health records doubled from 16 to 35 percent between 2009 and 2011.
Data also shows nearly 2,000 hospitals and over 41,000 physicians have received $3.1 billion in incentive payments for ensuring meaningful use of health IT.
Eighty-five percent of hospitals report that by 2015, they intend to take advantage of incentive payments available through the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs.
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