HHS seeks applications for new health IT committee

Would-be members of the Health Information Technology Advisory Committee have just a few days to get their applications in to the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, as the Aug. 4 deadline approaches.

HHS is asking for applications for two of the three members it will appoint to the committee, established by the 21st Century Cures Act to recommend policies, standards and other digital health guidance to the ONC.

The 21st Century Cures Act stipulates that of the three HHS appointees, one represents HHS and one is a public health official.

Other members of the committee are named by the Government Accountability Office and by members of Congress, who have already appointed Sutter Health clinical informaticist Dr. Steven Lane, Norton Healthcare Chief Information Officer Steve Ready and NantHealth founder Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong.

The new committee replaces the Health IT Policy Committee and the Health IT Standards Committee.

Per the 21st Century Cures Act, the new panel will look into, among other topics, health IT infrastructure, “existing gaps in policies and resources” for interoperability, and how to make digital health information travel more effectively among users.