Reference no: EM132222626

Interests groups provide their members with greater opportunities to participate effectively in the policy market. An example of the interest group tactics at work from the “Coalition Letter Requesting Changes to Meaningful Use for Greater Systems Interoperability," would be when the organization began to write a letter to express their immediate concerns. This letter reveals its author's interests in shaping this element of health policy and believes that the MU programs and with the adoption of health information technology they could promote improvements inpatient safety, care quality, and efficiency.

The interest group was also able to recommend different approaches to improve the MU program and health information technology. Some of these approaches would streamline and focus on ONC certification requirements on privacy/security and quality measure reporting or fostering collaboration among stakeholders to promote the development of new health information technology that is focused on meeting clinical care needs. One interest group agenda-setting tactic that members of one of the letter’s “undersigned organizations” could attempt in order to further support their intentions in this letter, would be shaping public opinion. "Although the effect of the appeals to public opinion made by interest groups on policymaking is debatable, the effect and persistence of the practice suggests that interest groups believe that it does make a difference."