Here is a paper that I wrote a couple of months ago on EHRs and the state we are in currently. With the recent news in the media about EHRs, I think most of the issues are even more relevant today. Below is the first paragraph:
The United States population is one of the largest in the world with 300 million people and increasing at rate of 1%.1 A growing population of this size, however, also comes with its set of problems. One of the problems, maybe the most important, is health care and how it is provided and consumed in such a large country. One particular aspect of health care that makes it a special topic is its universality. No matter how healthy or sick, every single person in the population is part of this system either by receiving or providing health care, although the frequency and the amount of care will vary among different demographic groups. Unfortunately the cost of health care has been increasing over years and health cost per capita in the U.S. is highest in the world4. A direct result of high cost of health care is reflected in the decreased number of people getting the necessary medical treatment. According to a National Institute of Health (NIH) study, almost 8% of people who are in need of medical help cannot get it due to economic hardship.
You can read the rest of the article in PDF or Word format.
