Analysts: Republicans Not Targeting Health Technology

There seems to be no target on the back of health information technology. Republicans in the next Congress are expected to come after various pieces of health care reform, but not electronic medical records, the Times reports today.

“The tech spending is set to go on,” said Lynne Dunbrack, an analyst in the Health Industry Insights unit for IDC, a technology research company. “The better use of health care technology to reduce costs and improve care has bipartisan support.”

Some new evidence of industry's confidence in the future of health IT: AT&T has just announced a new division called AT&T ForHealth, the Times reports in its Bits blog.

AT&T will offer data-center and hosting technology for [EMR] exchanges. It also plans to provide telehealth services for remote diagnosis and treatment, and a wide range of support for preventive and disease management applications on smartphones.