In a letter to GAO Comptroller General Gene Dodaro, the five senators — Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., and Bill Cassidy, MD, R-La. — ask that GAO provide data on patient data mismatches and detail their associated costs and risks.
The authors cite a Congressional ban on HHS’ ability to expend funds to develop a single patient identifier system, which has resulted in flawed identifiers that are proprietary or unique to specific health systems.
“Correct patient matching is necessary for sharing patient information between providers, ensuring efficient use of health care resources and improving the quality of health care,” they write. “Patient misidentification can lead to inadequate, inappropriate, and costly care and, in the worst cases, patient harm or death.”
The senators also request GAO recommend to ONC ways to develop improved patient matching methods.
Click here to view the full letter.
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