Final answer:
The HITECH Act incentivizes health professionals and hospitals to use EHR technology through incentive payments. It was part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and aims to improve healthcare quality and efficiency while reducing costs.
Step-by-step explanation:
The HITECH Act offers incentive payments to eligible professionals and hospitals that adopted, implemented, upgraded, or demonstrated meaningful use of certified Electronic Health Record (EHR) technology. Health Information Technology (HITECH) Act was enacted as a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Its primary aim is to encourage and incentivize healthcare providers to use EHRs in ways that can improve healthcare quality, efficiency, and patient safety.
The introduction of EHRs under the HITECH Act is also supported by the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which contains regulations to control increases in healthcare costs. Under the ACA, healthcare providers are encouraged to switch to electronic medical records (EMRs) to reduce administrative costs and improve care coordination.