Georgia is seeking to be one of 12 "demo sites" for a $150 million pilot federal program to provide money to some physicians to set up electronic health records systems, Gov. Sonny Perdue said Wednesday.

He made the announcement in a joint appearance with U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt, who came to Georgia to explain the program.

President Bush has called for a universal electronic medical system to be in place by 2014, a timetable many analysts say is unrealistic, especially since the concept has many foes who worry about costs and confidentiality.

But Leavitt, meeting with state officials at the Georgia Tech Research Institute, said the government's goal is to "make health care lower cost, better quality and less [of a hassle]" and that making health records universal and accessible would accomplish those goals.

"If you go to a doctor's office you have to fill out the medical clipboard every single time, the same information over and over again," he said. "Electronic records should move from place to place."

Making records readily available electronically would reduce costs radically, he said, and also cut down on medical errors.

He said the federal government will decide which 12 regions get grants by this fall.

Each one selected will get between $12 million and $15 million, he said, which "isn't enough to get every doctor, but it will help us to learn how to share benefits" and teach physicians about the economics and "interoperability" of the nation's $2 trillion health care system.

He said areas selected may be limited to a metro area like Atlanta or include an entire state.

Making health records electronic and more widely available is controversial for cost and confidentiality reasons.

David Cook, executive director of the Medical Association of Georgia, said the organization supports electronic records but "obviously there are a lot of details and shoals to navigate."

William Custer, director of the Center for Health Services Research at Georgia State University, said a move to electronic records is essential but will be costly in terms of equipment, training and ensuring safety.

Many physicians, such as Dr. Sandra Fryhofer, an Atlanta internist, say switching from paper records to an electronic system would cost far more than they can afford.

She said "health information technology and electronic medical records sounds great, but if doctors can't afford it, patients can't benefit from it."

Still, Leavitt said the government is "crafting a system of electronic medical records, quality measurements and price comparisons so people can have better health, better quality at lower costs and less hassle" and that "there [would be] clear benefits for consumers and patients."

Leavitt, a former Utah governor who oversees Medicare and Medicaid, said the government is likely to spend $150 million over five years to pay for the program.

Dr. Gregory Simone, president and chief executive officer of WellStar Health System in Marietta, said security problems could be significant, but also overcome.

"There's always people who're going to want to do something nefarious," he said. "But we can't let that stop us. There is always some risk."

Many doctors and hospitals have made at least some records electronic, said Dr. Norman Jacobs, an internist at DeKalb Medical and one of the leaders of its computerization initiative.

Though some hospitals have gone digital in a big way, most haven't, he said, and it'll take doctors' offices longer.

Perdue said electronic records would "change the quality of health care" and make today's paper-based system look laughable.

"I'm convinced that good information means good quality health care, not just lower costs," he said. "We want to put the patients in charge. We want physicians to have access to records that will allow them to make those good decisions, and then see the result of the quality decisions they make."

He said confidentiality "will be built in" to any systems in the pilot program.

Leavitt said he believes the President's target date of 2014 is feasible because "we're seeing the large technology companies like Microsoft, Google and WebMD" that are interested in "offering personal health records."