Capital spending on health IT is still growing, most survey participants report, even as the bulk of federal electronic health-record incentive payment money has been spent.
Asked to project what will happen with capital expenses in their organizations during the next three years, 69% estimated they would increase, 15% predicted they would drop and 16% expected no change. Increases in the range of 6% to 10% were most commonly named.
Asked what percentage of the overall capital budget was spent on IT assets during the past three years, 43% of respondents picked the 0% to 10% range, with another 28% selecting the 11% to 20% spending range. Asked to look forward three years, the percentage of readers selecting the lowest range (0% to 10%) dipped to 39% but rose to 35% for the next higher range (11% to 20%).
Just over three-fourths of survey respondents indicated they expect their direct IT operating expenses to increase during the next three years, compared with only 12% who forecast a decrease and another 12% who expected no change.
The median increase in expected IT operating expenses was in the 6% to 10% range.
Future IT staffing was a mixed bag, with slightly more than 47% of readers projecting no staff increases during the next 12 months, 43% expecting increases (a 10% rise in staffing was the median increase), and only 9% looking to lose IT staff (with 8% as the median expected loss).
Follow Joseph Conn on Twitter: @MHJConn
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