U.S. health data czar sees role for government hand

"It is clear that this field has not advanced (enough) ... when left exclusively to the private sector so there is a public role," said Dr. David Blumenthal, head of the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology.

Backers of electronic records say they can protect patients by preventing medical errors and save money by avoiding duplicated tests and better managing chronic conditions that can be costly to treat.

Read the Article at Reuters