Leapfrog on the Bush administration’s new quality measurement program

In August, President Bush signed an executive order that, by the new year, will establish standards for information technology (IT) and quality for healthcare providers that do business with the federal government. The plan will require federal agencies who purchase health care to gather information on health care providers regarding their quality of care and use of IT, such as writing prescriptions and reporting lab results electronically.

The Leapfrog Group is thrilled to see the Federal government moving in the direction we have been promoting for six years – strong signals from both the private and public purchasers of care that health care performance must be measured, made transparent, and improved. Like the President, we believe improvements in the health care IT infrastructure are essential to optimum patient care.

Beyond urging use of CPOE (computerized physician order entry) since 2000, Leapfrog is now working to launch a CPOE evaluation tool that will invite providers to demonstrate that their use of this technology truly protects patients through sophisticated use of clinical decision support. We will share the CPOE tool with those focusing on health information technology in the public sector and are grateful its development has been supported by the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

Click here to read more about CPOE.

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