“Legislation currently before the Senate would force Customs and Border Protection to expedite deployment of an electronic health records system in 90 days, a timeline one former official with experience in the area says is ‘incredibly optimistic’ in the best of circumstances.”
“U.S. Border Patrol apprehended more than 977,000 people attempting to cross the southwest border illegally over the last year, an 88% increase over fiscal 2018 and the relatively stable numbers going back several years.”
“As those people are taken into custody, they are evaluated by medical personnel who document health issues and other medical conditions, according to the agency.”
“’CBP shares appropriate medical information with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Health and Human Services prior to the transfer of migrants/detainees,’ a CBP spokesperson told Nextgov. ‘In locations with medical contract support providing care onsite, that information includes documentation of an exit health interview and any appropriate medical treatment information. In other locations or circumstances, including in the case of referrals to local health systems, CBP shares appropriate discharge and care information with the aforementioned agencies.’”
“But that process is entirely paper-based, the spokesperson confirmed. The agency is currently working on an EHR system but did not respond to questions about whether the system was being built in-house or bought from a commercial vendor or whether officials had done any market research…” Read the full article here.
Source: Can CBP Stand Up an Electronic Health Records System in 90 Days? – By Aaron Boyd, November 7, 2019. Nextgov.
