The Health IT Now Coalition, which represents more than 175 stakeholders including AstraZeneca, Cisco Systems and Pfizer, joined a growing chorus of groups urging lawmakers to include health information technology language in the economic stimulus package that is expected to be finalized after the 111th Congress gavels into session in January (see recent CongressDaily coverage here). The coalition sent a letter Tuesday to members of the House and Senate. The Divided We Fail campaign, which is backed by the AARP, Service Employees International Union and others, also recently asked members for a bailout that includes "significant support" for health IT.

Providing financial incentives for health IT "would not only stimulate economic growth, but would also promote efficiency, improve health outcomes and dramatically reduce health costs for consumers and taxpayers," Health IT Now wrote. "In this economic recession, states are faced with balanced budget requirements at the same time revenues are down and spending on support programs is increasing," the letter explains. Meanwhile, state programs like Medicaid are in need of funds but they often do not utilize health IT to reduce unnecessary tests and procedures and to prevent fraud or abuse, they argued.