Information Technology

While technology has been a key component of medicine in the modern era, healthcare is moving towards more personalized treatments that are based on enormous amounts of data that are collected and managed in complex computer systems. Will equitable access to healthcare in the future mean not just access to medical professionals, but also access to these promising technologies that can aggregate information from multiple sources, and provide support for treatment planning?

Smartphones and digital devices are no longer just for entertainment or work. Hospitals and doctors’ offices are experimenting with how “smart” devices can support health. How prevalent is broadband access across the states? What is the prevalence of smartphones and wearables like FitBit to log data? To what degree do patients interact with their healthcare providers through technology today?

The Supreme Court held 6-2 in Gobeille v. Liberty Mutual Insurance Company that the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) preempts Vermont’s all-payers claims database (APCD) law. Seventeen other states collect health care claims data. The State and Local Legal Center (SLLC) filed an amicus brief arguing against ERISA preemption, which Justice Ginsburg cited three times in her dissenting opinion.

ERISA applies to the majority of health insurance plans. Rather than guaranteeing substantive benefits, it mandates oversight over plans. ERISA preempts all state laws that “relate” to any employee benefits plan. Vermont’s APCD law requires health insurers to report to the state information related to health care costs, prices, quality, and utilization, among other things.

According to a Stateline report today, less than half of U.S. doctors (48.1 percent) have made the switch to electronic records. Nine states were significantly above the national average – except for Massachusetts, these states were clustered in the upper Midwest and the West. The seven states, and the District of...

Data is the “oxygen for our program” said a Super-Utilizer Summit leader in the October report Super-Utilizer Summit: Common Themes from Innovative Complex Care Management Programs. Data can help policy makers identify and target super-utilizers. However, the correct type of data is important to accurately measure and target patient populations.

Claims data is one source to paint a broad picture of patient populations...