David Brailer
David J. Brailer (born July 16, 1959) is known for his leadership and advocacy for health information technology specifically founding and investing in leading health IT companies.

On May 6, 2004, Brailer was appointed by the administration of President George W. Bush as the nation's first 'Health Information Technology Czar'. Brailer's official title was National Health Information Technology Coordinator. In this role, he developed the nation's strategy for electronic records, information sharing, consumer empowerment and transformation of research and public health with the goal of widespread deployment of health information technology within 10 years.

Brailer remained in his government post for two years. Following his public service, he transitioned to the private sector where he has held several executive and advisory positions.

Education
Brailer holds doctoral degrees in both medicine and economics. He earned his Ph.D. in managerial economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1992 and his M.D. from West Virginia University School of Medicine in 1986.

While in medical school, he was a Charles A. Dana Scholar at the University of Pennsylvania, School of Medicine. Brailer was among the first medical students to serve on the board of trustees of the American Medical Association. He completed his medical residency at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and became board certified in internal medicine along the clinical investigator pathway. Brailer was a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar at the University of Pennsylvania.

He earned his bachelor's degree in science and political science from West Virginia University.

Career

University of Pennsylvania
After completing a general medicine residency at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in 1991, Brailer cared for patients at the University of Pennsylvania as a physician in general medicine and immune deficiency.

Brailer holds an adjunct professorship at the Wharton School, is an associate professor in internal medicine for the University of Pennsylvania Health System, and is a senior fellow for the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics.

Previously at the Wharton School, he founded the health management program's health information technology program, taught in the MBA program, and lectured in the executive education program.

CareScience
In 1992, Brailer left academia and founded a company spun out of his Ph.D. thesis, inventing ways to measure health-care quality. This became CareScience Inc., a Philadelphia software firm that helped hospitals improve efficiency and prevent errors. Under Brailer, CareScience established the nation's first health care Application Service Provider (ASP). Brailer led the company through several financings, strategic partnerships, an initial public offering in 2000, and sale to global software firm Quovadx in 2003.

Health Technology Center
After CareScience, Brailer took an advisory role at Health Technology Center, a non-profit research and education organization that provides strategic information and resources to health care organizations about the future impact of technology in health care delivery. There, he advised the Center on a number of regional and national data sharing projects.

HEP 
In mid-2007, Brailer founded HEP, a private equity fund with a mission to “invest in things that can reduce the crushing costs of health care.” The California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) invested $700 million in the fund.  Notable HEP investments include Halcyon Home Health, Prolacta Bioscience, Optimal IMX, Mollen Immunization Clinics, Kisimul, Freedom Innovations, CenseoHealth and CambridgeSoft. On March 23, 2011, CambridgeSoft was acquired by PerkinElmer, Inc. in a $220 million deal.

Brailer serves on a number of boards of directors, including Prolacta Biosciences and Walgreens.

Health Evolution 
In 2011, Brailer founded Health Evolution, an education and research firm.  The firm is known for the Health Evolution Summit, an annual gathering of the nation's top health care leaders.  Brailer remains Chairman of Health Evolution.

US Department of Health and Human Services
On May 6, 2004, Brailer was appointed as the first National Health Information Technology Coordinator, pursuant to  by President George W. Bush on April 27, 2004, which called for widespread deployment of health information technology within 10 years.

In this role, Brailer designed and directed a bipartisan effort to encourage the digitalization of health care. His work led to the formation of both the National Health Information Network and the Meaningful Use incentives program for the adoption of electronic health records.

Awards and achievements
Brailer was the first recipient of the National Library of Medicine Martin Epstein Award for Medical Computing Research for a student paper on expert systems.

He was also one of the first medical students to serve on the board of trustees for the American Medical Association.

Most notably, he was the country’s first health IT czar, leading the national effort to digitalize healthcare.