Using electronic health records to save money

Area of Science:

• Health Information Technology
• Healthcare Management
• Cost-Effectiveness Analysis

Background:

• Electronic Health Records (EHRs) offer potential for enhancing healthcare efficiency and effectiveness.
• Optimizing specialist referrals is crucial for managing healthcare costs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the cost-savings achieved by integrating a preferred specialty care provider list into primary care physicians' (PCPs) EHRs.
• To evaluate the impact of this health information technology intervention on healthcare utilization and costs.

Main Methods:

• A preferred provider list, categorized by cost (classes 1-4), was integrated into PCPs' EHRs.
• Primary care physicians received comprehensive training on the new system.
• Referral patterns and total specialist visit costs were tracked over four years (2005-2008).
• Quality assessment (QA) scores were monitored to evaluate the effect on patient care quality.

Main Results:

• Referrals shifted towards less expensive providers, with a significant increase in class 2 referrals and a decrease in classes 3 and 4.
• A significant reduction in total specialist visit costs was observed, with real costs decreasing substantially over the study period.
• Quality assessment scores remained unaffected, indicating no compromise in patient care quality.

Conclusions:

• The integration of preferred provider lists within EHR systems can effectively guide healthcare provider utilization.
• This health information technology strategy demonstrates significant potential for reducing healthcare expenditures.
• EHR-facilitated provider selection offers a viable policy approach to decrease healthcare costs.