February 11, 2009 12:21 AM UTC

National Coordinator for Health Information Technology?

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• by: Western Way

One of my many reservations about the stimulus package (S. 336) that was just passed by the senate and is now in resolution, is the sheer amount of “stuff” (yes, that is a technical term) that is in this bill.  Section 3001 (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/F?c111:15:./temp/~c111vU3qLS:e329207:)creates the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, who would report directly to the Secretary of HHS.  

The question that we all should be asking ourselves is does this belong in a bill like this?  With so many different appropriations, earmarks, etc. being put in to this bill it is difficult for the American people to know what is going on…  All bills like this do is increase the democratic deficit the average American feels.

Let’s think about the above…  Do I want the government to have access to my health-care records?  Do I want my doctor to give up his autonomy (A page out of the Daschle playbook “Critical: What We Can Do About the Health-Care Crisis), in favor of a more collective process of decision making about my health?

In conclusion, if policymakers are really serious about working for the American people, they need to be upfront with us (the people) and let us know what the hell they are passing (and MSM, do a better job holding them accountable).