76 percent of Hospital Readmissions are preventable, at an annual cost of $25 billion

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Submitted by Michael Brody on Sun, 09/23/2012 - 11:52

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Hospital Impact reports that in order to reduce preventable medial errors that result in hospital re-admissions the following changes need to be considered:
1. Transition physician reimbursement from fee for service to capitation with incentives for value
2. Create significant financial incentives for management to invest in a disease management infrastructure
3. Implement rigorous disease management for high-risk populations
4. Horizontally integrate case and risk management beyond the hospital's wall

ONC issues EHR draft tests for 2014 functions

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Submitted by Michael Brody on Sun, 09/23/2012 - 11:44

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WASHINGTON – The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT has unveiled its second set of draft test procedures to assure that electronic health records can perform functions required in 2014.

ONC also requested public comments and suggestions for the 2014 proposed certification test methods, according to a Sept. 14 ONC announcement. ONC released the first wave of test methods one week earlier.

Fed backs down on HIE 'Rules of the Road'

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Submitted by Michael Brody on Sun, 09/23/2012 - 11:42

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From GovInfoSecurity.com

Supporters of a recent decision by federal regulators to back away from issuing voluntary "rules of the road" for secure health information exchange say the move makes sense, given that HIEs are still in the early stages of development (see: ONC Backs Off HIE 'Rules of Road'). But some others argue that establishing HIE benchmarks, especially for privacy and security, is advisable now to help build public trust.

NY Times: Medicare Bills Rise as Records Turn Electronic

Submitted by warren on Sun, 09/23/2012 - 08:18

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The NY Times article examines the increased cost to the government that has come with the use of EHR software and examines such things as cloning and overly-aggressive billing by doctors and hospitals.

Of note to medical professionals should be this line: This spring, the Office of Inspector General for the federal Health and Human Services Department warned that the coding of evaluation services had been “vulnerable to fraud and abuse.”

Sen. Kerry looking to expand MU for those providing for low-income

Submitted by warren on Wed, 09/19/2012 - 19:17

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U.S. Senator John Kerry is sponsoring a bill that would help providers who serve mostly lower-income Americans but who fall outside of the qualifications for Meaningful Use. The MITECH Act (Medicaid Information Technology to Enhance Community Health Act) would expand eligibility for MU incentives for providers operating as qualified safety net clinics.

Read the full article at http://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/kerry-proposes-meaningful-use-bill

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