Q&A: Mostashari On Sequester, RECs, CommonWell

Interoperability and exchange are perhaps the most frequently spoken words at this year’s HIMSS13 conference. Yet they are only two among the many issues facing national coordinator Farzad Mostashari, MD, this week.

Government Health IT Editor Tom Sullivan spoke with Mostashari on Tuesday at the show about sequestration, the newly-formed CommonWell Health Alliance, the sustainability of Regional Extension Centers after their federal funding comes to a close, and a glimpse of what to expect during Mostashari’s Thursday morning keynote.

Q: By how much will sequestration reduce your budget and what has to give?
A: It’s 5 percent: A $3 million cut for an office whose budget has been $60 million since the day it was founded by President George W. Bush. This is going to hurt. We are not furloughing people, which is the bulk of the budget. So our contracts are going to take a big hit.