A new report from the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society’s research arm predicts that U.S. hospitals will spend about $4.7 billion on health IT this year and about $6.8 billion by 2014, Health Data Management reports.
For the report, titled “Essentials of the U.S. Hospital Market, 4th Edition,” HIMSS Analytics surveyed 5,100 hospitals.
The researchers projected that health IT would account for about 43% to 48% of total hospital capital budgets this year.
The projected figures are lower than 2007 levels, possibly as a result of the ongoing recession. However, the report predicts that health IT spending will increase over a longer time frame by a compounded annual rate of 7.5%.
The report identifies several factors that could account for the increase in health IT spending, including:
- Incentive payments for electronic health records outlined in the federal economic stimulus package;
- Increased clinical automation spending;
- New ICD-10-CM codes; and
- New 5010 standards for electronic claims.
Materials related to the report are available on HIMSS Analytics’ Web site (Anderson, Health Data Management, 6/4).
EHR Market Growth
In related news, a recent study by Kalorama Information suggests that the market for EHR applications and data transfer will increase from $575 million in 2008 to $1.6 billion by 2013, Healthcare IT News reports.
The report, titled “High-Tech Patient Monitoring Systems Markets,” predicts that the market will increase by 23.3% annually through 2013 as a result of increased EHR use in hospitals and physician offices.
The report also notes that EHRs are a key component of President Obama’s health care reform efforts because they have the potential to:
- Boost efficiency and accuracy;
- Cut health care costs;
- Improve patient outcomes and satisfaction;
- Provide greater physician freedom; and
- Reduce hospitalizations.
However, the report acknowledges that high implementation costs sometimes pose a barrier to EHR adoption (Monegain, Healthcare IT News, 6/4
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Tags: EHR Market, Hospital Health IT, U.S. Hospital Market
Posted June 26, 2009 by admin under E-Prescription, Electronic Prescription
