Sales of electronic medical records (EMRs) grew 14.2% in 2011, resulting in a $17.9 billion market, according to a new report released by market research firm Kalorama Information.
The growth was sparked by government incentives as well as a desire to improve patient outcomes and cut costs, the report found.
The report included data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) that indicate 56.9% of office-based physicians used partial or full EMR systems in 2011, an increase from 2010.
Incentives have increased the use and growth of EMR systems, according to Kalorama. As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the U.S. government set aside nearly $20 billion in incentives for hospitals and physician practices to adopt electronic medical records.
The first incentives were paid in 2011 based on 2010 performance; more than $1.3 billion in Medicare incentive payments were made between May 2011 and the end of December 2011, and more than $1.1 billion in Medicaid EHR incentive payments were made between January 2011 and the end of December 2011, the firm said.
