The government’s new Health Information Technology Advisory Committee (HITAC), established under the 21st Century Cures Act, will have its first meeting on January 18.
The Cures Act established the HIT Advisory Committee, which replaces two separate health IT policy committees that were previously overseen by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC)—the Health IT Policy and Standards Committees. Its role will be to provide guidance on policies, standards, implementation specifications, and certification criteria relating to the implementation of a health information technology infrastructure that advances the electronic access, exchange, and use of health information.
The HIT Advisory Committee will have 25 members who are selected by a mix of the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Majority and Minority leaders of the Senate, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, and the Comptroller General in the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
Last month, Acting HHS Secretary Eric D. Hargan named three members to the Committee, who join 15 GAO-selected members and six others who have been selected Congressional leaders. A list of those names can be read here. Two members appointed by Senator Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. are reportedly still pending approval.
According to a notice in the Federal Register, the first meeting will be held on Jan. 18, 2018. Per the notice, “The Health information Technology Advisory Committee, among other things, shall identify priorities for standards adoption and make recommendations to the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology (National Coordinator) on a policy framework to advance an interoperable health information technology infrastructure. The HITAC will hold public meetings throughout 2018.”
