Author: Kathie McDonald-McClure

Hot Topics in Electronic Data Usage, Privacy and Security Webinar

Kathie McDonald-McClure Privacy & Security , ,

The Kentucky Chamber is sponsoring a webinar on eletronic data usage, privacy and security on November 18, 2010, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm (EST).  Erin McMahon, Esq., a partner with Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs, LLP, and a member of its Health Care Service Team, will talk about employer’s maintainance of privacy and security of electronic data and using it properly. The webinar will examine what data should be private on employees’ computers, some of the Web site and social media issues facing employers, the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Red Flags Rule, and data breaches. For more information, and to sign up, click here.

Critical Access Hospitals to Submit Part C Informational Only Claims to Medicare Contractors for EHR Incentive Payment Purposes

Kathie McDonald-McClure Electronic Health Records, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Hospital EHR Stimulus , , , ,

On October 15, 2010, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued Transmittal 2066 to address the submission of informational only claims by Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) as well as Maryland Waiver Hospitals in order to track Part C patient days for purposes of  calculating the Electronic Health Record (EHR) incentives available to such hospitals. Informational only claims are billed for patients enrolled in a Medicare Advantage (MA) Plan.  The Transmittal also includes the Incentive Payment formula for Subsection (d) hospitals as well as CAHs, as follows:  Continue reading →

EHR Certification Organizations and Certified EHRs

Kathie McDonald-McClure EHR Certification Standards, Electronic Health Records, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Meaningful Use , , , , , , ,

Just to recap where we are today, the U.S. Health & Human Services Department (HHS) Office of National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) has authorized three organizations to perform complete EHR and/or EHR module testing and certification under the Temporary Certification Program Rules. Certification means that the EHR or EHR module has the capabilities necessary to support the efforts of eligible hospitals and eligible professionals in meeting the Meaningful Use requirements under Final Rule issued by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for Meaningful Use.  The three ONC-Authorized Testing & Certification Bodies (ATCBs) to date are Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT), Drummond Group, Inc. (Drummond), and InfoGuard Laboratories, Inc. (InfoGuard). For additional information about the ONC process for achieving ATCB status, as well as more information about Standards & Certification generally, see the ONC webpage.

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CMS Posts Updated and New EHR Incentive FAQs

Kathie McDonald-McClure EHR Certification Standards, Electronic Health Records, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Hospital EHR Stimulus, Meaningful Use, Physician EMR Stimulus , , , ,

On September 27, 2010, CMS updated its answers and posted a few new ones to frequently asked questions (FAQs) about the electronic health record (EHR) incentives available under the HITECH Act’s Meaningful Use (“MU”) Final Rule.  Here is a sampling of answers addressed in the FAQs: 

  • Registration for Medicare MU incentives is to be available on-line in January 2011 with more information to come near end of 2010.
  • All EHR products must be certified through the ONC Authorzied Testing and Certification Body (ATCB) in order to meet MU.
  • Providers, not vendors, must demonstrate MU of certified EHRs.
  • Payment of Medicare MU incentives is expected to begin in May 2011.
  • There is no funding to reimburse a provider for EHR implementation costs that exceed the established MU incentive payment caps.
  • Ambulatory Surgery Centers are not eligible for the EHR incentives.
  • There is no funding under the HITECH Act for nursing home EHRs. 
  • Eligible Professionals (EPs) may assign their incentive payments to their employer or an entity with whom the EP has a contractual arrangement.
  • EPs cannot receive an incentive payment under both the Medicare MU program and the MIPPA E-Prescribing Incentive Program in the same year.
  • EPs can receive both the Medicaid MU Program incentive and the MIPPA E-Prescribing Incentive Program payment for the same year.
  • An EP in a hospital-based ambulatory care clinic may be eligible to receive the Medicare MU Incentives if such EP is not providing 90% of his or her services in the hospital ED or inpatient care setting.
  • EPs eligible for both the Medicare MU incentive and Medicaid MU incentive payment in the same year must choose one.
  • Once an EP receives an MU incentive payment under either Medicare or Medicaid, that EP can switch between the programs only once before 2015.
  • The reporting period for EPs is 90 consecutive days during the first calendar year that the EP qualifies and a full calendar year thereafter.
  • Medicare payment adjustments begin in 2015 for both EPs and hospitals who do not demonstrate MU.
  • CMS will publish the names, addresses and business phone numbers of all EPs and hospitals receiving EHR incentive payments.
  • The meaning of numerators and denominators in the measures required to establish MU is briefly summarized in this FAQ.
  • Patients admitted through the Emergency Department (ED) will be included in the MU measures respecting inpatients.

As of today’s date, there were 103 FAQs related to EHR incentives. To read all the FAQs about EHR incentives, go to the CMS FAQs webpage and enter the search terms “EHR incentives.”

CMS Issues HITECH IT Guidance to State Medicaid Directors

Kathie McDonald-McClure Electronic Health Records, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law , , , , , ,

On August 17, 2010, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a 4-page letter plus attachments to State Medicaid Directors giving guidance on the implementation of Medicaid EHR incentive programs under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH) and the recently published CMS Final Rule under HITECH.  HITECH mandates that the Federal government provide 100% funding to States for the incentives available to eligible professional and hospitals who participate in HITECH’s Medicaid incentive program, and 90% funding to States for the administration of such Medicaid incentives.  States, however, must qualify for the 90% administrative Federal funding participation (FFP) by:

  1. Administering the Medicaid incentive payments to eligible professionals and hospitals;
  2. Overseeing the Medicaid incentive program, including tracking “meaningful use” attestations and reporting mechanisms; and
  3. Pursuing initiatives that encourage the adoption of certified EHR technology for the promotion of health care quality and the electronic exchange of health information.

Importantly, States must use the HIT Implementation Advance Planning Document (IAPD) in order to request the FFP and must receive approval before implementing proposed activities and services or acquiring equipment. CMS points out that some activities may be more appropriately reimbursed through the existing Medicaid Management Information Systems and that other administrative expenditures may not be eligible for any Federal funding.  States must have a State Medicaid Health Information Technology Plan (SMHP) outlining the State’s current and future HIT landscape and plans for implementation of the Medicaid EHR incentives.  CMS made available a SMHP template for States to outline their Medicaid EHR incentive implementation plans and timeline, referenced here.

The guidance documents CMS included with its letter are: A)  Administering the Medicaid EHR Incentive Program; B) Oversight of the Medicaid Incentive Program; C) Guiding Principles for the Use of the 90% FFP for EHR Promotion; and D) SMHP/IAPD Review Process.   For additional CMS information for states, click here.