Sebelius requests panel for health information technology exchange
Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius asked the Kansas Health Policy Authority at its board meeting Tuesday to set up an advisory panel for a statewide health information technology exchange."Kansans need timely access to their personal health records in order to make educated decisions, just as health care professionals need accurate and accessible records to avoid duplication of services" Sebelius said in a release. "Today I'm requesting that the KHPA Board establish a Kansas Health Advisory Panel to provide guidance on policy issues related to health information technology and to be a resource for stakeholders."
Last year, Sebelius created the Kansas Health Information Exchange Commission and asked it to advance the use of technology, decrease health care costs and improve health care quality in the state. The commission recently issued a report identifying leadership and resource needs as the key issues to support and stimulate health information exchange across the state, the release said.
"I believe that the creation of this panel represents the next step in lowering the costs of health care and making it more affordable for all Kansans," Sebelius said.
Barbara Langner, the KHPA's policy director, said in an interview that the board had voted to accept the governor's charge to create the panel. Sebelius will appoint seven members and an ex officio member to the panel, Langner said, and the KHPA will do the same.
The KHPA wants to have the panel in place by the end of the legislative session, toward the end of April, Langner said.
The KHPA board comprises nine voting members appointed by the governor and the state's secretaries of various state agencies and the KHPA's executive director.