Expect States to Take Control of Health Reform
By:Sydney Williams - - 07/09/2010

46 states face budget shortfalls. Can they afford health reform? Read More..

Health Reform, Is Your Company's Plan Grandfathered? Be careful.
By:Site Post - - 07/07/2010

Employers who offer health coverage have many new requirements to understand related to the recently passed Affordable Care Act. Most of the major changes do not become effective until January 1, 2014 particularly given the "grandfathered" status. However, maintaining this status may be more difficult and costly than most realize. Losing the grandfathered status could make the new reform rules effective as early as September 23, 2010. Reviewing a white paper titled "Understanding Grandfathered Health Plan Status: A Guide for Employers and Huma...Read More..

What's Next for ONC's Agenda with EHR's, Certification and more?
By:David Willcutts - - 01/21/2010

Information Week's recent interview with ONC's Dr. David Blumenthal provided some interesting insights into what is next and who is out there to help providers realize these goals. Where are the meaningful use guidelines? What about the certification process and who will be certifying? And is there enough talent in the marketplace to make this happen? Read More..

NHIN Re-thought? ONC's Dr. David Blumenthal is re-envisioning
By:David Willcutts - - 01/21/2010

The six year effort by the government to create a National Health Information Network through efforts such as RHIOs is getting a fresh look. Is there practicality coming out of Washington? Or is this another twist in the road to a far off dream? At first glance, having a focus on smaller providers' ability to share data locally seems wise. Hmmm... has anyone every heard that health care will always be local! Read More..

Sentor Grassley Keeps focus on Health IT Systems Liability and Confidentiality
By:David Willcutts - - 01/21/2010

Senator Grassley (R-IA) has followed up a Fall letter sent to ten Health Systems vendors with a group of letters now directed at their clients. The Senator continues to be concerned with system vendor's efforts to both limit liability to themselves as well as create "gag orders" on the sharing of information regarding the performance of installations. His focus is particularly on the purchasing process, implementation and how problems/issues are tracked, reported and shared. He is highlighting the sometimes challenging process of evaluation of...Read More..

Reform Legislation Aside, ICD-10 Could Be Health Care's Biggest Challenge
By:Sydney Williams - - 01/20/2010

Grassroots upheaval risks impacting the flow of dollars between buyers and sellers of health care services. Read More..

2010 Promises High Demand for Healthcare IT Professionals
By:Tim Willcutts - - 01/19/2010

As 2010 begins, the rush to meet new standards for electronic health record (EHR) technology has healthcare CIOs hiring more IT staff and the federal government offering various forms of financial incentives to spur readiness. 16% of healthcare CIOs plan to increase hiring in the first quarter of 2010, according to a report in Information Week . A recent Robert Half Technology phone survey reveals that healthcare CIOs were almost four times more likely to propose adding new IT staff than the total sample of CIOs surveyed across all industries....Read More..

New Threats to Medical Privacy: The Challenge of Securing Electronic Health Records
By:Tim Willcutts - - 01/09/2010

The Obama administration's new standards for electronic health record (EHR) technology promise a quantum leap in administrative efficiency and patient care, but many worry the new paradigm could expose patients to identity theft and other privacy breaches. One of the goals of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 is to get electronic medical records on file for every American by 2014, effectively amassing a database of every American's most sensitive personal information. The benefits are considerable: an ability to quickly...Read More..

$640 Million for Regional Extension Centers... What are they and How will they effect you?
By:David Willcutts - - 01/04/2010

$640 million will get you 70 centers each serving a minimum of 1,000 "priority primay-care providers" for the initial two year period. How this effects you? The anwer depends on what role you play in the EHR stimulus program. If you are a provider these RECs are intended to be an unbiased support center for your EHR selection and implementation. If you are an EHR vendor the RECs view of your product may determine your sales in this critical period. If you are a consultant these centers may become a source of leads. Read More..

EMR System vs. EMR Software
By:Site Post - Alok Prasad - 01/03/2010

You will often find most EMR vendors as well as Physicians using EMR System and EMR Software interchangeably leading the readers to believe that they stand for the same product. In fact, as explained below, they are quite different and in fact EMR Software is one of the components of an EMR System. The term "system" originates from the Greek term syst¯ema, which means to "place together" and defines a system as an integrated set of interoperable elements, each with explicitly specified and pre-defined capabilities, working seamlessly to perfor...Read More..

OASIS C knocking: Are you geared up for it?
By:Site Post - Angela Martin - 12/31/2009

All those home health agencies wishing for a Christmas miracle of delayed OASIS C implementation are in for some disappointment as the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is going ahead with the January 1 implementation of OASIS C . As such, home health agency clinicians will face a number of OASIS C hurdles, which may not be helped by the guidance issued by CMS. Read More..

HHAs and 10 percent outlier cap: Minimize the risk
By:Site Post - Angela Martin - 12/31/2009

There are tough times ahead for home health agencies affected by the 10 percent outlier cap. Here’s how you can lessen the policy’s impact on your agency: You need to find out right away if your payments will be limited, recommends Abilene, Texas-based financial consultant Bobby Dusek as the 10 percent per agency cap will start applying immediately in January. Read More..