Posts Tagged ARRA
Interoperability designated major component of “meaningful use”
Posted by Jim Denny in ARRA/Stimulus, Interoperability on January 5th, 2010
We now have our first look at the official shape “meaningful use” of electronic health record (EHR) technology will likely take – in the near future, at least. As many had anticipated, one of the principal underlying themes is interoperability.
The long-anticipated proposed rule defining meaningful use finally was released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on Dec. 30. On the same day, we also received the interim final rule setting initial EHR technology standards, implementation specifications and certification criteria from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC). You can view draft copies of both rules at www.federalregister.gov/inspection.aspx.
As it turns out, CMS will define meaningful use objectives in three distinct stages. Providers who meet the criteria in each of the three stages may be eligible for thousands of dollars in incentive bonuses through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). In this proposal, however, CMS has only defined the requirements for Stage 1, which focuses on:
SwipeIT: Standardized insurance ID cards considered for reliable data capture
Posted by Bryan Koch in ARRA/Stimulus, EMR, Healthcare Reform, Insurance, Practice Management System on September 2nd, 2009
When it comes to the healthcare reform debate, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and its push toward electronic medical records (EMRs) captures the lion’s share of the media spotlight. Somewhat lost in all the talk about EMR incentives, however, is a completely separate effort that’s underway to improve data capture and cut costs.
A project spearheaded by the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) called SwipeIT brings the concept of machine-readable standardized patient insurance ID cards to healthcare. Think of your debit card. If this concept works for the banking industry, why not healthcare?
Non-standardized paper health insurance ID cards currently cost the industry as much as $2.2 billion annually, MGMA estimates. The association calculates that the labor-intensive, error-riddled process of manually obtaining patient demographic and insurance information from inconsistent paper ID cards may cause as many as 10%-25% of rejected claims. Today, many patient check-in kiosk solutions read magnetic insurance swipe cards provided by insurance carriers. However, not all of these institutions provide such cards. Read the rest of this entry »
Real and reasonable progress towards healthcare reform
Posted by Jim Denny in ARRA/Stimulus, EMR, Healthcare Reform, Interoperability on August 31st, 2009
The summer of 2009 will no doubt go down as one of the most stimulating in the history of healthcare. The specter of reform, technological interoperability and incentive/penalty programs generated lively – to say the least – debate.
But in the midst of the confusion and hyperbole (e.g., “death panels,” special-interest strangleholds, socialized medicine) real and reasonable progress has been seen in the areas of meaningful use and electronic health record (EHR) certification.
Significant strides were made in finalizing the definition of “meaningful use,” an ambiguous concept that had left the industry wondering how it could be applied as a benchmark to measure EMR effectiveness, as required by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). By mid-summer the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), after a period of public comment, zeroed in on a definition: that meaningful use “enable significant and measurable improvements in population health through a transformed health care delivery system.” It likewise set goals for providers to accomplish by 2011:
- Allowing patients to access their health records in a timely manner;
- Developing capabilities to exchange health information where possible;
- Implementing at least one clinical decision support rule for a specialty or clinical priority;
- Providing patients with electronic copies of discharge instructions and procedures;
- Submitting insurance claims electronically; and
- Verifying insurance eligibility electronically when possible. Read the rest of this entry »
The times they are a’changing
Posted by Jim Denny in ARRA/Stimulus, EMR, Health Information Technology, Practice Management System, Revenue Cycle Management on August 25th, 2009
There is no way Bob Dylan could have been thinking about HIT when he released his 1964 album predicting a new vision for America. Yet his words seem remarkably appropriate as healthcare leaders from coast to coast wonder how best to prepare themselves for the game-changing technology initiatives that loom on the horizon.
The passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) in February 2009 created unprecedented interest in electronic medical records – and with good reason. The legislation promises incentives for providers implementing an EMR system within the next few years and penalties against slow adopters shortly thereafter. Physicians have naturally begun worrying about how to select the “right” system – and how they would pay for it. HIT vendors added to the frenzy by intensifying marketing efforts in order to grab a piece of the EMR pie sooner rather than later.
But amidst the noise and confusion of early reactions to the ARRA, both healthcare and technology leaders may have overlooked the overarching objective behind the push for EMRs: To increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the healthcare system. This is an opportunity to improve clinical outcomes while reducing cost to all stakeholders, including patients. Read the rest of this entry »
Getting your hands on critical business intelligence
Posted by Ken Bradley in ARRA/Stimulus, Business Intelligence, EMR, Revenue Cycle Management on August 19th, 2009
The ARRA’s focus on physician adoption of EMR technology, with its emphasis on implementation deadlines and reimbursement incentives, has dominated headlines to date.
But just as important – if not more – is the legislation’s directive that healthcare providers select systems that promote clinical interoperability and data transfer.
Most physicians and practice managers who have made the transition to EMR will tell you their systems capture plenty of information – overwhelming amounts, in some cases. The problem lies not in collecting data, but in how effectively it is shared and ultimately used. Read the rest of this entry »