When universal coverage advocates are asked how it will be possible to dramatically expand access without accelerating health care inflation, they usually go into a song and dance about improving efficiency through the judicious use of Information Technology.
This proposition is taken seriously by politicians like Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, whose health care reform plans anticipate tens of millions in savings due to IT implementation. John McCain also endorses aggressive adoption of the technology, though he makes no grandiose claims about the potential savings.
In light of all this, the Congressional Budget Ofiice decided to do a little reality check, and it turns out that there is far less to this panacea than meets the eye. The CBO report shows that health care IT does offer some benefits but not large-scale savings. In the words of the CBO Director:
In general … health IT appears to be necessary but not sufficient to generate cost savings; that is, health IT can be an essential component of an effort to reduce cost (and improve quality), but by itself it typically does not produce a reduction in costs.
Health care IT has been promoted by universal health care advocates because it allows them to avoid awkward discussions about trade-offs. They would like the public to believe that we can simultaneously achieve unlimited access, higher quality, and lower cost.
The unfortunate reality is that serious health reform will involve hard choices. And there is no panacea that will alter that fact.
[HT WSJ Health Blog]
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