http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=43413
Indian Cos Set To Benefit From US Healthcare Sector's Rising IT Spend:
Nasscom
R RAVICHANDRAN
HYDERABAD: With the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability
Act (HIPAA) and Balanced Budget Act (BBA) enacted recently to curb
skyrocketing costs associated with healthcare treatment in the US,
information technology is positioned to become a powerful ally in the
sector's attempt to adopt well-managed cost-effective strategies.
Spending in the US healthcare sector had soared to $1.42 trillion in
2002. Federal officials are estimating that healthcare expenditure
will grow faster than the general economy, possibly reaching 16 per
cent of GDP by 2010 in the US.
In order to meet these challenges and comply with the two federal
regulations, the US healthcare sector's IT spending is estimated to
touch $17.3 billion by 2007 as compared to $15 billion in 2002, says
the National Association of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom)
in its latest report.
As part of the exercise, outsourcing has been identified as one of the
major engines of this growth, with hospitals and health systems
wanting to focus on more mission-critical activities such as patient
care.
With the US healthcare industry increasingly under pressure owing to
the regulations and the need for investing in IT, there is a huge
potential for Indian IT companies to tap the healthcare market in the
US.
Indian IT firms with their emerging technology skills can offer US
healthcare providers significant savings in their administrative
billing practices as well as improved clinical treatment services
through the introduction of expert information systems, computer-based
patient records and other advanced technological solutions, the apex
body said.
Indian firms can focus on leading technology developments such as
computer-based patient records, data warehousing, document imaging,
Internet solutions, expert information systems, telemedicine which can
assist the US healthcare industry in achieving its objectives, the
report added.
According to the report, Computerised Physician Order Entry (CPOE)
represents the most popular investment over the next two years, which
will help reduce medical errors. IBM Global Services and EDC are the
largest outsourcing providers in the US followed by Perot Systems.
As managed care organisations grow and fee-for-service care wanes,
doctors and other practitioners alike will increasingly have a
financial interest in delivering low-cost care that accurately
documents the healthcare services and this is where Indian companies,
known for quality and cost-effective solutions, come in, the report
added.
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