EHR Compliance Issues to Keep an Eye Out For

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Linuxerist & Burton Samograd EHRs can make your life easier, if your staff training is comprehensive. Your electronic health record (EHR) system may be helpful in filling in documents on your behalf — but make sure it isn’t filling in more than it should. As most practices are aware, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 offers annual bonuses to practices that show “meaningful use” of EHRs over a five year period starting in 2011. In 2015, practices that aren’t meaningful users will face penalties.

Industry Group Announces Top 5 HIT Companies for 2010

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

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Innovation and communication are keys to vendor-provider relationship. The fevered search for HIT vendors continues for many health care organizations. It’s always nice to hear about vendors who are singled out for their excellence in the specific area of HIT — many companies claim to know the area, but do your research before believing what you’re told in a marketing meeting. Five firms have made it to the top list of health care IT companies with the most potential in 2010, according to a HIT industry group. Read on to find out who they are.

Poll Finds Dramatic Impact of Telehealth on Health Care

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

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Respondents fear unresolved reimbursement issues could be a barrier. The use of telehealth technology will have a positive impact on the health care industry over the next 10 years, a poll by Intel suggests. Eighty-nine percent of the health care decision makers polled put their bets on the technology, but also expressed some reservations, including the reluctance of patients and caregivers to try it, and the issue of reimbursement.

OCR May Expand Accounting of Disclosures under HIPAA

Thursday, June 3, 2010

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HITECH Act requires use of EHRs as tools to inform about disclosures under Privacy Rule. Health care organizations and providers thought they dodged a bullet long ago when they convinced HHS to exclude disclosures of patient data used in the process of treatment and payments from the HIPAA privacy rules. But now, thanks to the HITECH Act, HHS is back, wondering what would be so terrible about requiring an accounting of such disclosures now. Through a request for information issued in early May titled HIPAA Privacy Rule Accounting of Disclosures Under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (75 Fed Reg 23214 May 3, 2010), the HHS Office for Civil Rights says it expects to learn more about the interests of individuals, and the administrative burden on covered entities as well as business associates, concerning accounting for such disclosures. Under current standards of the…

EMR Use Might Distract Clinicians from Patient Interaction

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

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Will using EMRs cause physicians to sacrifice personal communication with patients? While electronic medical records (EMRs) have their downsides – the main one being start-up expenses – a new possible problem is revealed in a recent report released by the Center for Studying Health System Change.

All in a Day’s Work: Physicians Glued to E-mail, Phone

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

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Study suggests EHR could improve workflow efficiency. Answering e-mails and attending to other tasks that provide limited reimbursement keep primary care physicians busy these days, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine that analyzed data from electronic health records. Led by Richard J. Baron, MD of Greenhouse Internists, a community-based internal medicine practice in Philadelphia, the study looked into the records of 8,440 patients between 15 and 99 years of age. Using EHR, it was able to track the average daily workload of a primary care physician for one year.

HIT: Just in Time to Cure the Recession?

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

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Despite the promise of new jobs, EHR errors are still causing publicity and concern. By now we know the feds are handing out money – to colleges and non-profits, mostly – to jumpstart the adoption and meaningful use of electronic health records. But what’s recently become clear, too, is the role health information technology is playing in jumpstarting the still-saggy U.S. economy – if it will just work right. Read on to find out how the feds are promoting HIT as the source of new jobs while concurrently making major CYA moves to deal with reports of EHR errors.

Will the Feds Use EHR Taxes to Raise $20B HIT Fund?

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

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Medical device tax could pose big costs for consumers. Now that the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) includes approximately$20 billion for healthcare IT, the administration is starting to throw a lot of money around. Just where is that $20 billion coming from? Some industry folks think it could come in the form of a new tax on medical devices. In a recent post on the Health Data Management Blog, Editor-in-Chief Greg Gillespie spotlights this new tax – a 2.3 percent excise tax on medical devices set to go into effect in 2013. He says this figure hasn’t received much exposure in the media because it doesn’t sound like much – unless you’re in the medical devices market. The tax could generate almost $2 billion every year, says Gillespie.

e-Billing Portal Could Save Providers $4.8B a Year

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

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Vendors are targeting patients, too, promising easy management of statements. Vendors must be coming at health care providers from every which way these days, promising the moon. One area that’s especially active is electronic billing. This is good news for providers on several fronts: They’ll have more choices for EHR adoption, and more patients pay their bills on time, according to one company.

A Patient’s Very Own Tele-Reminder

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

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Researchers turn cell phones into medication sensors to monitor leukemia drug. Health care providers are lining up for federal ARRA money, but they’ll mainly be hiring outside IT experts to set up programs and move the health system in the e-world. And private companies are racing to create the IT solutions that will win the providers that money – but not just with electronic records. Disease management is a field that IT has been involved with for years already.

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