Policy Priorities

On an annual basis AMIA identifies a more focused set of key priority topics, especially for discussions during Hill Day. The topics are reviewed and approved by AMIA's Board of Directors and become the basis for the year's overarching public policy and government relations efforts. For 2011 - 2012  AMIA's focus will be on the following topics:

Ongoing Funding for Informatics Research, Innovation, and Development

• Agency for Health Care Research and Quality (AHRQ)
• National Institutes of Health (NIH)
• National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
• National Library of Medicine (NLM)
• Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC)

Impact of Health IT on Patient Safety and Quality of Care

• Meaningful Use (MU)
• Ensuring safe, effective use of health IT and electronic health records (EHRs)

Informatics and Health IT Workforce (includes education and training)

• Informatics competencies
• Funding for training programs; pipeline of trainees

EHR Best Practices, Lessons Learned and Successes

• EHR Evaluation
• EHR Usability
• Evolution of Clinical Decision Support

AMIA also works to shape public policy regarding ongoing health and health policy concerns such as ensuring access to care and protecting funding for core health IT and informatics related training programs and services. In addition, AMIA works to respond to ongoing and emerging issues such as bio-surveillance and emergency preparedness, access to care, public health infrastructure, disease control and prevention, health disparities, and global health.