EHR savings debate grows

In a letter sent last week to major national medical organizations, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and Attorney General Eric Holder stated: "There are troubling indications that some providers are using [EHR] technology to game the system, possibly to obtain payments to which they are not entitled." These accusations echo concerns I've had over the last year or so. That said, not all of the recent criticism heaped upon EHR vendors and buyers is justified. The Wall Street Journal critique, by Stephen Soumerai, a professor at Harvard Medical School, and Ross Koppel, from the University of Pennsylvania, doesn't tell the whole story.