The Department of Health and Human Services has announced plans to develop an exchange to continually scan and collect data on health IT innovations and to help identify where critical problems or emerging breakthroughs are occurring.

This exchange will furnish the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT and other HHS agencies--including the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality--with updates on the development of the  promising health IT developments that may support the achievement of meaningful use and the adoption of health IT.

HHS will use a vendor to support this effort, according to Government Health IT.

The health IT industry is developing a range of innovative technological approaches. Some of these innovations will quickly disappear from the marketplace, while others will create modest changes; a few, though, will have revolutionary impact over the next several years, according to the Dec. 30 announcement on the Federal Business Opportunities website.

One thing, though, in this field is certain: The technology of 2015 will be very different from that available today, the notice adds. With the federal government making multi‑billion dollar investments supporting health technology, programs and policies need to align with--and take full advantage of--technological advancement, it says. 

For more details:
- see the Federal Business Opportunities announcement
- read the Government Health IT article

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