Posts Tagged ‘POLST’

Programs will give Oregon competitive advantage for federal dollars

SALEM – Four pieces of legislation that will put Oregon at the forefront of modernizing health care technologies are scheduled for work session by the Senate Health Care and Veterans’ Affairs Committee this evening. These bills have the potential reduce costs for Oregonians while attracting millions in federal matching funds as part of the Obama administration’s plan for health care reform and economic stimulus.

“Health care reform is about more than just expanding access,” said Deputy Majority Leader Laurie Monnes Anderson (D-Gresham), chair of the committee. “We also have to look at inefficiencies in our system to lower costs, save time, and improve care.”

• SB 451 requires the Department of Human Services to establish and operate a statewide registry for collection and dissemination of physician orders for life-sustaining treatments, known also as POLSTs. This registry will help ensure that an individual’s wishes for emergency care are immediately available to health care providers, particularly for those patients with advanced chronic illness.
• SB 452 establishes a Health Information Technology Oversight Council to support the accelerated adoption of electronic health records. Research shows that the modernization of health care records can improve efficiency, reduce mistakes, strengthen disease management efforts, and improve care coordination. Within 12 years, Oregon could see a savings of $1 billion per year by investing in health information technology.
• SB 455 brings health care providers and insurers together with the state to develop and implement common evidence-based clinical guidelines and best practice standards for the use of medical technology. This legislation will improve the health care delivery system in Oregon by reducing costs and improving access and quality.
• SB 457 will require the Office of Health Policy and Research to create a health care workforce database. Currently, the state has no means to track ongoing, consistent, comparable data about our health care workforce. This database would provide critical information about the supply and distribution of health providers around the state – information that will inform efforts to building an effective health care delivery system. Continue reading “Press Release: Four proposals to increase health care efficiency scheduled to move in Senate Committee this evening” »