Doctors in the United States will get free software to computerize their records for better patient care under a government plan, a report said.
Doctors consider such a system long overdue, but have not implemented one on their own because of the high cost.
The government's Medicare system is expected to grant them their wish, the New York Times reported Thursday. Medicare officials also feel lack of electronic records is one of the biggest impediments to improving healthcare.
The agency's plan, expected to be announced next month, could help save a doctor's office with five physicians save more than $100,000 by choosing the Medicare software rather than buying it from a private company, the Times said.
Computerization will give doctors easy access to patient records, which now are stuck on pieces of paper in endless files. The system also would alert doctors to do medical tests and avert errors.
The new software is similar to Vista, a record-keeping program that has been used by hospitals for 20 years, the report said. The cost of the program to Medicare has yet to be determined.
© Copyright 2005 by United Press International
