AUGUSTA— The government says more than 2,000 Georgia doctors have collected $143 million in federal funds to help them make the switch from paper to electronic medical records.

The Augusta Chronicle reported that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced the payments on Tuesday. They were one of inducements included in the Obama administration’s overhaul of the nation’s health-care system. The goal is to reduce expenses by making it easier for health care providers to share information. That’s supposed to reduce the need for duplicate medical tests.

More than $5.7 billion in payments have gone to hospitals, doctors and nurses under the program nationally.