Leading Vendors Launch EHR Association

HIMSS EHR Vendor Association Will Provide Collective Voice to Accelerate EHR Adoption

CHICAGO – (November 10, 2004) – To accelerate the widespread adoption of the electronic health record (EHR), leading healthcare industry EHR vendors have come together to launch the HIMSS EHR Vendor Association. The new association will address national efforts to create interoperable EHRs and advance adoption, primarily in the hospital and ambulatory care settings. The association has partnered with the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) and will operate as an organizational unit within HIMSS for vendors that are EHR software solution providers.

The creation of the HIMSS EHR Vendor Association will work to further initiatives laid out by David J. Brailer, M.D., Ph.D., National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, in the Health IT StrategicFramework, which was released July 2004. The Framework calls for private sector initiatives to result in “more cost-effective EHR adoption, less risk-adverse buyers, and a faster-growing and more attractive market for investments in health information technology.”

The new EHR Vendor Association will also help HIMSS establish its strategic direction and official positions on issues related to the EHR as well as provide input and feedback to the certification process established by the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHIT).

“The adoption of the electronic health record demands collective involvement and expertise from private-sector companies that develop the software products clinicians will use in private practice or other healthcare settings,” said H. Stephen Lieber, HIMSS president/CEO. “One of the benefits of the HIMSS EHR Vendor Association is that it opens the communication process so that our members can work together to identify issues related to software development and functionality for EHR products.”

The association will help HIMSS establish its strategic direction and official positions on issues related to the EHR. The HIMSS EHR Vendor Association held its inaugural organizational meeting on November 3-4, 2004. Founding members of the EHR Vendor Association are:

A4 Health Systems (www.a4healthsystems.com)
Allscripts Healthcare Systems (www.allscripts.com)
Cerner Corporation (www.cerner.com)
Companion Technologies (www.companiontechnologies.com)
Eclipsys Corporation (www.eclipsnet.com)
e-MDs (www.e-mds.com)
Epic Systems Corporation (www.epicsystems.com)
GE Healthcare (www.gehealthcare.com)
GEMMS (www.gemmsnet.com)
Greenway Medical Technologies (www.greenwaymedical.com)
IDX Systems Corporation (www.idx.com)
iMedica Corporation (www.imedica.com)
McKesson Provider Technologies (www.mckesson.com)
MediNotes (www.medinotes.com)
Misys Healthcare Systems (www.misyshealthcare.com)
NextGen Healthcare Information Systems, Inc. (www.nextgen.com)
Physician Micro Systems, Inc. (www.pmsi.com)
PowerMed (www.powermed.com)
Siemens Medical Solutions (www.siemensmedical.com)
SOAPware (www.docs.com)
WebMD Practice Services (www.webmdps.com)

“We have a historic opportunity to dramatically improve the delivery of healthcare in this country. EHR technology has proven its ability to make healthcare safer, more efficient, and more convenient for patients as well as providers,” said Charlene Underwood, Siemens Medical Solutions, recently elected chair. “As EHR vendors, we have a responsibility to our customers to shape the future of interoperability for effective and secure sharing of patient data, and to the nation to promote the widespread adoption of this life-saving technology.”

Membership is open to legally formed companies that design, develop and market their own commercially available EHR software application with installations in the U.S. Anyone interested in more information can contact Pat Wise, HIMSS director of EHR initiatives, at pwise@himss.org.

About HIMSS:

HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) is the healthcare industry's membership organization exclusively focused on providing leadership for the optimal use of healthcare information technology and management systems for the betterment of human health. Founded in 1961 with offices in Chicago, Washington D.C., and other locations across the country, HIMSS represents more than 14,000 individual members and some 220 member corporations that employ more than 1 million people. HIMSS frames and leads healthcare public policy and industry practices through its advocacy, educational and professional development initiatives to promote information and management systems' contributions to ensuring quality patient care. Visit www.himss.org for more information.

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For more information contact:
Joyce Lofstrom
HIMSS
312-915-9237
jlofstrom@himss.org