Key survey findings include:
- Texans are optimistic about the positive benefits of health-care IT. Nearly three in four (73 percent) think that e-prescriptions will have a positive impact on the quality of health care they receive. Forty-three percent of Texans predict the quality and efficiency of care will dramatically or significantly improve as more technology is introduced into the health-care system, and another 33 percent predict modest improvements.
- Despite the optimism, Texans believe the state's health system needs reform. Nearly three in five Texas residents say the state's current health-care system needs reform. Among those who feel that reforms are necessary, cost (75 percent) far outweighs quality of care (15 percent) and efficiency and convenience (9 percent) as most critical.
- The current system poses efficiency and quality-of-care challenges. Nearly one in five participants said they have had a duplicate medical test or evaluation because health-care providers did not have the necessary medical records. Almost one in 10 said they had been given the wrong dosage or type of medication.
- Texans want policymakers to take action. Texas residents are more likely to feel that policy makers (37 percent) would have more impact than insurers (22 percent), health-care providers (16 percent), or employers (11 percent) on driving improvements in the state's health-care system.
