To provide for a National Health Information Infrastructure and data and communication standards for health Information system interoperability.

Summary: National Health Information Infrastructure Act of 2003 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to appoint a National Health Information Officer (the Officer) for the Department of Health and Human Services to maintain national leadership in the planning, development, and adoption of a national health information infrastructure (the infrastructure). Directs the Officer, in cooperation with key stakeholders, to develop a strategic plan for such infrastructure which shall contain various components, including a national agenda to guide policymaking, technology investments, and research.

Specifies certain goals for the infrastructure, which include minimizing preventable medical errors and reducing redundant paperwork. Directs the Officer to advise the Secretary on various topics, including to help make an assessment of the best current practices in the development, purchase, and maintenance of medical information technology.

Directs the Secretary to develop or adopt (and to periodically update) voluntary, national data and communications standards that promote the interoperability of health information technology systems across all public and private health care settings.

Allows the Secretary to: (1) enter into contracts to carry out this Act; and (2) test potential national data and communications standards.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``National Health Information 
Infrastructure Act of 2003''.

SEC. 2. NATIONAL HEALTH INFORMATION INFRASTRUCTURE.

    (a) National Health Information Officer.--
            (1) Appointment.--By not later than 6 months after the date 
        of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human 
        Services (in this Act referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall 
        appoint an individual as the National Health Information 
        Officer for the Department of Health and Human Services.
            (2) General duties.--Such Officer shall report directly to 
        the Secretary and shall be responsible for developing and 
        maintaining ongoing national leadership in the planning, 
        development, and adoption of a national health information 
        infrastructure. The Secretary may assign to the Officer other 
        duties that would promote the goals of this Act.
            (3) Strategic plan.--Not later than 6 months after the date 
        of the enactment of this Act, the National Health Information 
        Officer shall, in cooperation with key stakeholders, develop a 
        strategic plan to create a comprehensive national health 
        information infrastructure that encompasses public-sector and 
        private-sector health information activities. Such plans shall 
        include a national agenda to guide policymaking, technology 
        investments, research, and integration with ongoing public 
        health, healthcare, and health information technology 
        activities and a timeline for the specific duties described in 
        subsection (d)(1).
            (4) Limited term of office.--The National Health 
        Information Officer shall serve for a term of 5 years, after 
        which, unless extended by Act of Congress, the office shall 
        terminate.
    (b) Goals.--The goals of the national health information 
infrastructure are--
            (1) to maximize positive outcomes in clinical care;
            (2) to minimize preventable medical errors, especially in 
        hospitals and in the administration of contraindicated drugs;
            (3) to reduce redundant paperwork, such as the repeated 
        taking of patient histories;
            (4) to decrease costs from duplicative or otherwise 
        unnecessary testing or procedures; and
            (5) to establish a compatible information technology 
        architecture that increases health care quality and cost-
        savings, enhances security of information, and avoids the 
        financing and development of health information technology 
        systems that are not readily compatible.
    (c) Collaboration With Stakeholders.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall assure that activities 
        of the Department of Health and Human Services that relate to 
        the national health information infrastructure are undertaken 
        after consultation with and based on the recommendations of the 
        parties described in paragraph (3).
            (2) Periodic meetings.--The Secretary, through the National 
        Health Information Officer, shall convene as a group the 
        parties described in paragraph (3). Such group shall meet 
        periodically and collaborate to make recommendations to such 
        Officer and the Secretary on the matters described in 
        subsection (d).
            (3) Parties represented.--The parties described in this 
        paragraph are experts from the fields of medical information, 
        information technology, medical continuous quality improvement, 
        and medical records security and privacy, appropriate staff 
        experts from Federal agencies (including those within the 
        Department of Health and Human Services) and representatives of 
        the following:
                    (A) The National Committee on Vital and Health 
                Statistics, the National Institutes of Standards and 
                Technology, the National Library of Medicine, and the 
                Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
                    (B) Individual and institutional health care 
                clinical providers, including a teaching hospital and 
                physicians.
                    (C) Clinical and health services researchers.
                    (D) Health care purchasers.
                    (E) Private organizations with expertise in medical 
                informatics.
                    (F) Patient groups.
                    (G) A State or local public health department.
                    (H) The health care information technology industry 
                and national alliances formed to achieve standards-
                based health care information systems.
    (d) Duties.--In carrying out subsection (a), the National Health 
Information Officer shall advise the Secretary on the following, in 
order to promote the goals described in subsection (b):
            (1)(A) Not later than 1 year after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, an assessment of--
                    (i) the best current practices in the development, 
                purchase, and maintenance of medical information 
                technology; and
                    (ii) currently existing legal requirements for 
                communication standards.
            (B) Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment 
        of this Act, recommendations for a uniform health information 
        system interface, and methods for its adoption, to ensure 
        compatibility between and among old and new information 
        systems.
            (C) Recommendations for health and healthcare data 
        standards (such as vocabulary and messaging), communications 
        standards, and other medical standards (including a common 
        lexicon) necessary to achieve the interoperability of health 
        information systems.
            (2) Coordination of the evolution of the national health 
        information infrastructure and working with other key 
        stakeholders in the public and private sectors to develop a 
        strategic plan that will ensure the interoperability of all 
        elements of such infrastructure.
            (3) Coordination of spending across Federal agencies 
        relating to the establishment of such infrastructure.
            (4) Development of policies to ensure compliance with all 
        standards adopted under part C of title XI, including promotion 
        of patient control of protected health information.
            (5) Avoidance of confusion and potential non-compliance 
        with currently existing legal requirements.
    (e) Detail of Federal Employees.--Upon the request of the 
Secretary, the head of any Federal agency is authorized to detail, 
without reimbursement from the National Health Information Officer, any 
of the personnel of such agency to such Officer to assist the Officer 
in carrying out duties of the Officer under this section. Any such 
detail shall not interrupt or otherwise affect the civil service status 
or privileges of the Federal employee.
    (f) Use of Funds Consistent With National Agenda.--The Secretary 
shall develop a process (such as requiring the approval of the National 
Health Information Officer) to assure that to the greatest extent 
feasible funds of the Department of Health and Human Services granted 
or spent for health information systems are used to further the 
national agenda developed pursuant to subsection (a)(3).
    (g) Authorization of Appropriations and Sunset.--There are 
authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for each 
fiscal year beginning with fiscal year 2004 to carry out this section.

SEC. 3. DATA AND COMMUNICATIONS STANDARDS FOR INTEROPERABILITY.

    (a) In General.--Based on the recommendations provided under 
section 2(d)(1)(B), the Secretary shall develop or adopt (and shall 
periodically review and update) voluntary, national data and 
communications standards that promote the interoperability of health 
information technology systems across all public and private health 
care settings. The Secretary shall ensure thorough testing of data and 
communications standards before their implementation. In developing or 
adopting such standards, the Secretary shall take into account--
            (1) the ability of such standards to enable clinically-
        specific data collection in order to promote evidence-based 
        medicine and the electronic exchange of patient medical record 
        information; and
            (2) the costs of compliance and the savings and other 
        benefits from improved efficiency and quality in health care 
        delivery.
    (b) Reports.--
            (1) Initial report.--No later than 12 months after the date 
        of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to 
        Congress a report that includes a comprehensive national health 
        information infrastructure strategic plan and information on 
        progress on the assessments, the recommendations for the 
        interface, and the recommendations for standards, under section 
        2(d).
            (2) Subsequent reports.--During each of the 2 years after 
        the year in which the report is submitted under paragraph (1), 
        the Secretary shall submit to Congress an annual report 
        relating to additional recommendations, best practices, results 
        of information technology improvements, analyses of private 
        sector efforts to implement the data and communications 
        standards established under this section, and such other 
        matters as may help ensure the most rapid dissemination of best 
        practices in health care information technology.
    (c) Contract Authority.--The Secretary is authorized to enter into 
contracts--
            (1) for services and activities necessary to carry out this 
        section and section 2; and
            (2) to the extent practicable, to test the standards under 
        consideration under this section.
    (d) Dissemination.--The Secretary shall provide for the reviewing, 
updating, and disseminating the standards developed under this section.
    (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated such sums as may be necessary for each fiscal year 
beginning with fiscal year 2004 to carry out this section.