Statement on Interoperability Pledge

Rick Pollack

President and CEO
American Hospital Association

February 29, 2016

The future belongs to those who can harness the power of information to drive great patient care and health care delivery. That’s why we are proud to add our name to the pledges announced by Secretary Burwell this evening. We support the Administration’s efforts to realize a health information technology (IT) infrastructure that supports the delivery of high-quality, patient-centered care across health care settings. Hospitals are continually improving their ability to share information with patients and other care providers and we know that the upcoming years will bring further progress. At the same time, hospitals are also working diligently to ensure that personal information is kept secure.

Achieving a seamless flow of health information to support care and engage patients will require action from all stakeholders, including vendors, providers and policymakers. Hospitals need the technology of their IT systems to communicate effectively, without having to deploy expensive and cumbersome patches and partial solutions.

Greater sharing of health information holds the promise of making care better for patients and communities. With collaborative efforts to improve existing technology and infrastructure, we will be closer to achieving interoperability that allows for safe and secure access of health information by patients and across the health care system.

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About the AHA

The AHA is a not-for-profit association of health care provider organizations and individuals that are committed to the health improvement of their communities. The AHA is the national advocate for its members, which include nearly 5,000 hospitals, health care systems, networks, other providers of care and 43,000 individual members. Founded in 1898, the AHA provides education for health care leaders and is a source of information on health care issues and trends. For more information, visit the AHA website at www.aha.org.