Experts: States need uniform policy for health IT

With the incentives provided in the recently signed stimulus package for the adoption of health information technology, lawmakers across the country are expecting to be able to improve their states' health care by collaborating on a nationwide network of health data. Creating such a network, however, is a dizzying prospect bogged down by conflicting state laws regarding privacy and patient consent, policymakers acknowledged Tuesday at a conference of the National Governors' Association's State Alliance for e-Health. Laws and policies governing the use of electronic health information vary widely by state, and even within states different agencies interpret the jumble of rules on the books differently, said experts from the Health Information Security and Privacy Collaboration, a multistate collaboration established by RTI International. Indeed, members of the HISPC said, even their organization has had trouble interpreting the basic elements of the laws.