District of Columbia Bar Health Law Section Presents: An Overview of Health Information Technology: Challenges and Opportunities

Information technology initiatives have become a major focus of the health care industry, and of the legal and regulatory authorities affecting health information technology (HIT). The Bush Administration has set a goal of having an electronic health record for most Americans by 2014. As part of this effort, the US Department of Health and Human Services has awarded millions of dollars in contracts to help establish a nationwide health information network. Both newcomers to HIT and those with experience will benefit from an overview of the HIT-related legal, regulatory and policy considerations affecting providers, health plans and their legal counsel. Learn from our distinguished panel members who will address incentives and what some perceive as barriers to HIT adoption and implementation, including an overview of:

• Initiatives underway to drive improvements in HIT
• Privacy and security issues
• Stark and anti-kickback risks
• HIT-related pitfalls in legal contracts

Crowell & Moring's Ben Butler will join Mark C. Mantooth, Esq., Senior Counsel for Health Information Technology, Office of the General Counsel, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and William R. Braithwaite, MD, Ph.D., Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, eHealth Initiative; former Senior Advisor on Health Information Policy, US Department of Health and Human Services on the panel discussion for this brown bag lunch program.