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I know we're tired of hearing about stimulus... | by jpprater | 2009-02-10 18:57:50 |
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Pure FUD. | by firehawk | 2009-02-10 19:14:46 |
| Not totally FUD |
by DesiredUsername |
2009-02-10 23:10:10 |
But not accurate either..
- The author of the article is a member of the Hudson Institute, "an American, non-profit, conservative think tank" "closely associated with neoconservatives". Scooter Libby was a former Senior Advisor to the Hudson Institute. Right off the bat, there's going to be a hard right wing slant to the bill analysis.
- The bill does contain the basis for the things she says. pg 442, HR1EH:"10 provides appropriate information to help 11 guide medical decisions at the time and place of 12 care;"
- From my reading, I think the author is postulating potential outcomes (of the worse kind, given her slant) of the sections about HITECH in the bill. The things she says aren't explicitly listed in the bill.
- In the section I quoted above, the neutral/positive reading of 'guide' says that the HITECH information system will be available to doctors to allow them to make the proper decisions with as much information about the patient as possible. Under this reading, there's nothing that says the system will tell doctors what to do.
- I didn't, however, see anything that would prevent the kind of system that she suggests. <cynic>When has the government not done a power grab given the chance </cynic>
- I couldn't read enough to understand the 'Federal Council' part she references pg 464 that would set cost-effective standards. There's too much legalese for me.
- There's enough in here to concern me, and question why something like this is being hidden away in a 'stimulus' bill. The obvious public answer is that this spends money and will enhance the efficiency of the medical industry, reducing costs in the future. The more cynical answer is that (in all likelihood) there's no other way this would get passed on it's own.
Having a crisis is a great time to ramrod bad legislation through (see PATRIOT Act).
The above is based on a fairly quick reading of the sections in question. I don't like it, but then again, I don't like the whole stimulus bill either. I don't think it's necessarily the death sentence the article suggests, but I don't think it'll lead to hugs and puppies, either.
HITECH: Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health
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[ Reply ] |
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That's what I got out of it, although I should | by firehawk | 2009-02-10 23:17:17 |
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Here's the 'guide' section | by DesiredUsername | 2009-02-10 23:27:32 |
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