By Kelley Weiss
Kansas City, MO – States around the country are considering filing medical records electronically. Kansas and Missouri want to use electronic records to bring down costs and improve healthcare. KCUR's Kelley Weiss reports.
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Leaders from a dozen states are meeting in Kansas City to discuss how to make sharing health information electronically a reality. Governor Kathleen Sebelius says patients would get better care and states would save money by making records electronic. She says administrative costs account for 30 percent of healthcare expenses.
Kathleen Sebelius: "When you spend money on healthcare more of that money will be going to actually provide care, buy medicines, a doctor visit as opposed to spending money on filling out forms and paperwork."
Sebelius says Kansans would gain the convenience of carrying only one card that healthcare and insurance providers could swipe to access patient's information electronically.
Funding for health care coverage on KCUR has been provided by the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City.