Advocacy

HIMSS NorCal Advocacy Update

To Our Esteemed Current and Future Members of HIMSS Northern California,

Public policy is at the core of what we do at HIMSS. By studying current trends and advocating for resources toward the better intersection of patient care and technology, we can create tremendous change and cost efficiency for healthcare consumers, manufacturers, insurers and providers alike.

This 2024-2025 fiscal year has created unprecedented change in the awareness and policy oversight needs for emerging AI technologies and how they can be responsibly controlled. In response, your Advocacy Committee is dedicating itself to the four pillars of legislative advocacy in California. These are: 1. Awareness and responsible oversight of AI and ML technologies for patient care, 2. Oversight policy for cybersecurity and state HIPAA security and privacy standards, 3. Advancement of, and funding for, state and private sector interoperability initiatives, and 4. Continued push for remote care and telehealth initiatives for Medicare, rural, and underserved populations in California under the quadruple aim.

The last fiscal year, your Advocacy Committee proudly submitted written requests to several legislators to consider introducing bills that would allow patients to more easily access their own data across healthcare entities. We also requested that the California Data Exchange Framework (DxF) which is a model for the nation in data sharing, implement a standardized opt out process for patients who wish to keep their data segregated.

We are planning an in-person State HIT Day in Sacramento on May 22, 2025 that will include visits to the legislators in the Capitol and end in a networking event. We will arrange appointments for you to meet with your legislators and provide information you can use during those conversation. Even if you are not planning to come to State HIT Day, we welcome you to a preparatory webinar, scheduled for April, to assist you in your phone, email, and online (form) communication with your State representatives.

You can find the bills currently active in the California legislature here: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/

If you have an interest in being more involved in advocacy, please consider volunteering to join us. We look forward to working with each of you to ensure we all have a say in what we can and must do, and as always, please feel free to reach me at norcal.advocacy@himsschapter.org

 

With Regards,

Amith Viswanathan

 

Chair, Advocacy Committee

HIMSS Northern California