News & Media
- Why physicians should buy their own mobile devices
Should you buy your medical staff smartphones, tablets, or other mobile devices, or let them use their own devices for work? It's a dilemma most CIOs are facing now, with little long-term experience to guide them.
FierceMobileHealthcare spoke with two IT executives on opposite sides of this argument, both with reasonable solutions. This week, you'll hear why Todd Richardson, CIO with Deaconess Health System, Evansville, Ind., lets physicians use their personal devices for work. Richardson (pictured) spoke on the issue at the World Congress Leadership Summit on mHealth in Boston last week, and later explained to me the ins and outs of his policy.
- Why hospital social media is a full-time job
With technology changing every day, it can be hard to keep up with best practices in the social media sphere. One thing's for sure, though; patients are looking online to find out and talk about hospitals. In fact, more than half of patients (57 percent) would pick a hospital based on its social media presence. Even more consumers (81 percent) see hospitals visible in social media as more cutting edge, according to market research firm YouGov Healthcare.
- One Year after Health Care Reform, Antitrust Concerns Raise Questions about Viability of ACOs
In the year since President Barack Obama signed the ground-breaking Patient
Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) into law, doctors and health care
facilities have carefully studied new health care mandates, incentives and
compliance issues to understand how the many reform provisions will alter
how they do business. With billions of dollars in federal Medicare
reimbursements at stake, physicians and health organizations are working
overtime to reconcile their operations and policies with health care
reform's new rules and regulatory guidance phasing in over the past year.
Among immediate questions health organizations must answer are how to
navigate new controls over their finances and collaborate with other
institutions on costs without breaking antitrust laws.
- Medicare e-Rx Incentives/Penalites
ODs should e-Rx to avoid future Medicare pay penalties.
Health care practitioners should prescribe pharmaceuticals electronically during 2011 if they wish to avoid new Medicare e-prescribing (e-Rx) payment penalties that are scheduled to begin in the near future, the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) warns.
Optometrists - unlike most health care practitioners - will not be subject to payment penalties under the Medicare e-Rx Incentive Program during 2012. However, they may wish to meet the program's e-prescribing standards this year in order to avoid any chance of penalties during 2013, according to the AOA Advocacy Group.
- How Will EHRs Impact Medical Liability?
Widespread use of clinical decision support may establish new legal standards of care
Moving from paper to electronic data is expected to have widespread patient safety benefits, but could the use of electronic health records actually heighten the liability risks clinicians and hospitals face? And does the existence of the technology change what is legally expected of physicians?
- EHR use has increased among physician practices
Use of electronic health record software is slowly but surely rising in physicians' offices across the U.S. In particular, more mid-sized and large practices are implementing EHR systems, according to a recent survey by healthcare marketing solutions firm SK&A.
Overall, adoption of such software is up nearly 2 percent since last October, with 40.4 percent of respondents indicating in July that they now are using an EHR. In October, that number was 38.7 percent.
- Meaningful Use payment volume steadily increasing
Preliminary data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services show attestations and payments for Meaningful Use of electronic health records, while off to a slow start, are starting to increase in volume.
Through July 31, 2,383 physicians and other eligible professionals had attested to meeting Meaningful Use requirements under the Medicare program, and 1,078 had received incentive payments, according to figures that CMS supplied to FierceHealthIT. One-hundred hospitals attested through July, and 66 received payments. Under the Medicaid programs now operating in 23 states, CMS had paid incentives to 3,334 EPs and 199 hospitals through July 31.
- A Perspective On: Cloud-Based Modular EHRs Offer Advantages for Meaningful Use
Physicians who seek to obtain government incentives for "meaningful use" of electronic health records have two options:
They can use a legacy client-server EHR that has all of the components associated with Meaningful Use, or They can utilize "best-of-breed" EHR modules (often secure-cloud based without up-front hardware costs) that are certified to meet Meaningful Use functional criteria.
- SAVE THE DATE: 2011 NYeC Digital Health Conference
The New York eHealth Collaborative (NYeC) will hold its first annual NYeC Digital Health Conference December 1st and 2nd, 2011 in New York City at Pier Sixty, Chelsea Piers. The conference will bring together health information technology (HIT) stakeholders from the public and private sectors—including providers, hospital administrators, insurers, IT vendors, other members of private industry, and government representatives. The conference will create a forum for healthcare stakeholders to collaborate and network with attendees in the business, technology, healthcare and policy realms.
- NYeC Regional Extension Center Rapidly Approaching Capacity
In just a short period of time, the NYeC Regional Extension Center (REC) has helped 2857 primary care providers progress toward Meaningful Use—more than half the total number it is subsidized to assist through its federal grant.
- HIPAA Audits Are Coming: KPMG Contracted to Perform 150 Audits Through 2012
You can’t run and you can’t hide — HIPAA audits are coming. HHS, through the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) recently named KPMG as the recipient of a $9.2 million contract to develop a HIPAA auditing protocol and conduct audits on 150 covered entities and business associates before December 31, 2012.
- Ellmers Introduces Bill to Remove e-Prescribing from Meaningful Use Requirements:
Rep. Renee Ellmers (R-NC) has introduced the “Stripping The E-prescribe Arbitrary Mandates (STEAM) Act.” In a blog post, Rep. Ellmers explains that HR 2128 “would prevent Medicare fees and penalties to hospitals and doctors that cannot yet e-Prescribe, and removes e-Prescribing as a requirement for fulfilling the ‘meaningful use’ definition of the Electronic Health Records (EHR) program.
- CMS Proposes Policy, Payment Rate Changes for 2012 Physician Fee Schedule
Earlier this month, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a proposed rule that would update payment policies and rates for physicians and nonphysician practitioners (NPPs) for services paid under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) in calendar year (CY) 2012. More than 1 million providers of vital health services to Medicare beneficiaries – including medical and osteopathic physicians, limited license practitioners such as podiatrists, and NPPs such as nurse practitioners and physical therapists – are paid under the MPFS.
- CMS to Host 5010 Testing Week Next Month
Jan. 1, 2012 is the deadline for the conversion to the ASC X12 Version 5010 transaction standards. To encourage preparation for the transition, CMS has announced a National Version 5010 Testing Week beginning Monday, August 22. National 5010 Testing Week is an opportunity for trading partners to come together and test compliance efforts that are already underway with the added benefit of real-time help desk support and direct and immediate access to Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs).
- How hospitals can prepare for next phase of ICD-10 transition
As Phase 1 of ICD-10 transition comes to a close, the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) is helping hospitals complete the next stage with its Top 10 list of Phase 2 implementation. While all of the 10 steps must be done in Phase 2 of ICD-10 conversion, they may need to be conducted simultaneously rather than consecutively, notes the AHIMA in its white paper [1].
- Four New State Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs Launched in July
On July 4th, the Medicaid Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Program launched in Arizona, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and West Virginia. This means that eligible professionals and eligible hospitals in these four states will be able to complete their EHR Incentive Program registration at the state level and receive incentive payments. More information about the Medicaid EHR Incentive Program can be found on the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Program Basics page of the CMS EHR website.
- How to Improve Volume in Your Practice (Radiology)
Decreasing reimbursement from payers, decreased utilization, and multiple procedure discounts are driving many facilities out of the market, or at the very least, making it extremely difficult to operate in the black. In this tough environment, one answer continually resurfaces: VOLUME, more volume. How do you mitigate the decreased reimbursement? More volume. How do you offset the multi-procedure discounts? More volume. It seems that this answer is the solution (or one of the best) to most of the difficulties in our current environment. The comforting thing is that growing volumes in your facility may be easier than you think.
- NYT: Double CT Scans Unnecessary, Cost Medicare $25 million a year
Hundreds of hospitals across the country needlessly exposed patients to radiation by giving patients doubled-up CT chest scans a front page article in Saturday's New York Times found.
- Consultants favored over vendors for health IT rollouts
OREM, UT – Whether in a leading or supporting role, third-party firms specializing in a vendor's applications implement them more adeptly than the vendor itself for all but one vendor - often by a wide margin, according to a new KLAS study. For the report, Clinical Implementation Services: High in Demand But More Specialized in Need, healthcare providers reported contracting out implementation work to 30 different companies, from smaller boutique firms to the software vendors themselves. Every vendor, except for Epic, was outstripped by third-parties specializing in the vendors' own applications.
- HIMSS Seeks Case Studies on Mobile Health
HIMSS is seeking case studies from healthcare organizations on the implementation and use of mobile health technologies for possible use in an upcoming book project.
- Industry and Government Leaders Discuss Exporting Health IT Products and Services
Key leaders came together to discuss opportunities and challenges of exporting health IT products and services at a June 17th roundtable discussion convened by the White House and the International Trade Administration. Jeremy Bonfini, HIMSS Executive Vice President of Global Services, and Tom Leary, HIMSS Senior Director for Federal Affairs, were among two dozen health IT executives participating in the “Health IT: Beyond Our Borders” roundtable.
- Improving Informatics Skills for Clinicians, New Foundation Incorporates
Focused on better preparing the clinical workforce to use technology and informatics to improve patient care delivery, Technology Informatics Guiding Education Reform (TIGER) becomes the TIGER Initiative Foundation effective July 1. The 501(c)(3) organization now operates for charitable, educational and scientific purposes.
- New York State’s Proposed All-Payer Database
The New York State Department of Health (DOH) is developing an all-payer database (APD) for New York State. The database will serve as a repository of claims data drawn from all major public and private payers which may also be combined with clinical and public health data sources. APDs support state-level health care reform efforts by providing powerful tools to evaluate critical issues such as regional variations in utilization, quality, and cost. In addition, APDs are used to examine the impact of reimbursement methodologies, public health interventions, and health care resources on utilization, quality, outcomes, and/or costs. When this data is publicly available, consumers will have the tools they need to compare price and quality for important health care decisions. APDs may be a valuable tool in assessing the impact of various delivery system reforms and payment innovations encouraged by federal health care reform.
- Meaningful Use Reimbursement Checks
The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) EHR Incentive Program has started issuing checks to providers and New York State is seeing its share of early success. As of June 1st, 2011, 13 providers in New York State have been sent payments from Medicare for their successful attainment of Meaningful Use Stage 1. Nationally, approximately 320 providers have completed the process.
- What the Providers Are Saying About EHRs
At NYeC’s Syracuse and Binghamton educational Summits on April 28 and April 29, 2011, several providers spoke on various panels and the impact EHRs have had on their practices. Their presentations captured the benefits of EHRs for both patients and providers. Their first-hand accounts spoke about improved patient care, more efficient offices and cost savings.
- Radiologists could net $1.5B for EHR use
Radiologists "would be wise" to study and respond to the government's incentive programs related to the Meaningful Use of certified ambulatory electronic health record systems, considering that more than 90 percent could qualify for the bonus payments, according to a new article in the Journal of the American College of Radiology.
- Meaningful Use payment volume steadily increasing
Preliminary data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services show attestations and payments for Meaningful Use of electronic health records, while off to a slow start, are starting to increase in volume.
- CMS continues ICD-10 resource rollout
While many in the industry liken the ICD-10 compliance date to flipping a switch, there will be a tricky subset of claims that “span the implementation date.” Such claims will be the result of service performed and coded in ICD-9 on or prior to September 30, 2013 combined with care delivered after the October 1, 2013 compliance deadline – and thus coded as ICD-10.
- HealthIT.gov Has Officially Launched!
The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) is pleased to announce the launch of its new website, HealthIT.gov. This website is designed to become the leading national resource on health information technology (health IT) for both consumers and health care professionals.
- New England Journal of Medicine Study Shows Benefits of EHRs
Yesterday the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) published a study, which looks at care delivered to diabetic patients in physician practices that use electronic health records compared to physician practices that do not. The results should not come as a surprise to those of us who are working to speed the adoption and meaningful use of health IT: Practices that use EHRs --
- Registered providers for EHR incentives surpass 90K mark
Nearly 91,000 eligible professionals and hospitals have signed up to participate in the Medicare and Medicaid electronic health record incentive programs so far in 2011, according to the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT's Health IT Policy Committee.
- CMS launching ACO database with identifiable participant info
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will launch a new accountable care organization (ACO) records database that will house personally identifiable information about participants in the Shared Savings Program and Pioneer ACO Program, according to a CMS announcement. The information will include Medicare beneficiaries, healthcare sole proprietors, ACO leaders and managers, and other ACO-related persons and span data, such as names, gender, Social Security numbers, birthdays, addresses, health insurance claim numbers, and types of services, among other information.
Questions about our Practice Management Services?
Call us at 888-999-2177 or click here to have one of our Account Representatives contact you
The 2009 HITECH Act
Learn how the Federal Stimulus Bill can help.
BroadviewHealth Delivers Improved Practice Performance By:
- Providing Full Visibility Over Your Operational Efficiency
- Providing In-depth Analysis of Your Financial Performance
- Utilising EMR/PM Solutions to Streamline Operations
- Maximizing Your Collections
- Reducing Your Reimbursement Cycle and Accelerating Payments
- Decreasing the Rate of Lost and Denied Claims
- Eliminating Unnecessary Administrative Costs
OUR NEWSLETTER
Warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /homepages/30/d181181129/htdocs/broadviewhealthcare/include/rightsidebar.php on line 121
Follow Us
