Governor Douglas in DC for health care reform talks

Today, Governor Jim Douglas will be traveling to Washington, DC, for events and meetings related to health care reform. At a press conference at the National Press Club, Governor Douglas and Governor Phil Bredesen (D-TN), co-chairs of the National Governors Association (NGA) State Alliance for eHealth, will present the 4th Annual SafeRx Awards. Surescripts created the Safe-Rx Awards to raise awareness of e-prescribing as a means of enhancing patient safety by providing a more secure, accurate and informed prescribing process.
To the State Alliance, e-prescribing is important to building momentum toward the goals of an effective health care system and improved public health, said Governor Douglas. And I m proud that e-prescribing has been an integral part of Vermont s Health Information Technology strategy from the start. That s because e-prescribing is a fundamental system improvement for ensuring accurate, timely health care communication. Much of Vermont health care reform is about utilizing the right tools to enhance our systemic approach to health care reform and the evidence regarding the value of e-prescribing is clear.
In the afternoon, Governor Douglas will meet with U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT). Senator Hatch is a member of both the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance and the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions the two committees currently drafting comprehensive health care reform legislation. Governor Douglas is currently Vice Chair of NGA, co-chair of the NGA s Health Care Reform Task Force, and in July will be taking over as Chair of NGA.
Health care reform isn t something that s going to happen down the road, it is something that is happening right now all across the country. Governor's are leading the way in a number of states. In Vermont, our reform efforts have gained national recognition for the way we re covering our residents, and integrating primary care medical homes, community health teams, and health information technology to drive changes in care delivery at the community level, said Governor Douglas. We re happy to see that Washington is turning its attention to this important issue now because we need federal participation in a comprehensive approach to improving our system of care and access.