Commercial Payors Implementing EHR Meaningful Use Criteria in P4P Programs

August 7, 2010October 31, 2011 Kathie McDonald-McClure Health care reform, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Hospital EHR Stimulus, Meaningful Use, Physician EMR Stimulus commercial payer support for EHRs, Electronic Health Records, eligible professional incentives for electronic medical records, Health Information Technology, HITECH Act, hospital incentives for EHRs, linkedin, meaningful use of certified EHR

Update: On August 9, 2010, Humana, Inc. and athenahealth, Inc. announced their collaboration to provide physicians access to a practice management/EHR software system combined with a rewards program related to quality measures. For more information, click here.

On August 5, 2010, four major commercial health insurance payors participated in the Health Industry Forum in Washington, D.C., to discuss private industry collaboration with the United States Health & Human Services Department (HHS) to support providers in the adoption of certified electronic health records (EHRs). Leading the Forum’s panel discussion was David Blumenthal, M.D., Chief of the Office of National Coordinator of HIT. All four payors will include the Meaningful Use criteria in their pay for performance (P4P) programs.

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HHS Releases Final Rule on “Meaningful Use” of Electronic Health Records

July 14, 2010January 10, 2011 Kathie McDonald-McClure EHR Certification Standards, Electronic Health Records, Health care reform, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Hospital EHR Stimulus, Meaningful Use, Physician EMR Stimulus, Privacy & Security 75 Fed Reg 44314 July 28 2010, 75 Fed Reg 44590 July 28 2010, EHR Certification Standards, Electronic Health Records, eligible professional incentives for electronic medical records, Health Information Technology, HITECH Act, hospital incentives for EHRs, linkedin, meaningful use of certified EHR, privacy and security of health information exchange

Update: On December 29, 2010, HHS published in the Federal Register a “Correcting Amendment” to its Final Rule on Meaningful Use, which can be viewed here.

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius wasted no time in putting the brand new CMS Director to work on July 13, 2010, in announcing the release of two rules under the Health Information Technology for Clinical and Economic Health Act (HITECH), including the Final Rule on Meaningful Use and the Final Rule on Initial Set of EHR Standards and Certification Criteria. Donald M. Berwick, MD, MPP, FRCP, was sworn in as Director of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on Monday afternoon, July 12, 2010, and by the next morning was primed to discuss the important role of health information technology (HIT) in America. In addition to Dr. Berwick’s participation at the press briefing, other participants included David Blumenthal, MD, the Chief Coordinator for the HHS Office of National Coordinator of HIT (ONC), Regina Benjamin, MD, U.S. Surgeon General, and Regina Holiday, an individual who shared a personal experience involving access to health information and how such access impacts the care of patients.

Quick Reference: The CMS Fact Sheet on both Final Rules is available here.

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HHS announces proposed rulemaking to “significantly” modify HIPAA

July 8, 2010October 31, 2011 Kathie McDonald-McClure Electronic Health Records, Federal Law Resources, Health care reform, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Meaningful Use, Privacy & Security Electronic Health Records, Federal Law Resources, Health care reform, Health Information Technology, HITECH Act, HITECH implementation, linkedin, privacy and security of health information exchange

On Thursday, July 8, 2010, the United States Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) held a press briefing to announce “significant modifications” through proposed rulemaking to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) pursuant to the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009 (HITECH). The proposed modifications also seek to strengthen the privacy of health information and help Americans understand their rights and resources available to safeguard their personal health information. As part of the latter effort, Sebelius announced the launch of another new website “where Americans can read about all HHS’ efforts to protect privacy in the exchange of electronic health information and that will give Americans the tools needed to embrace technology to take control over their health information.” The website will be available at www.hhs.gov/healthprivacy.

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Event in Louisville, KY to focus on “Meaningful Use” under HITECH

January 15, 2010January 21, 2014 Kathie McDonald-McClure Electronic Health Records, Eligible Professional Incentives, Health care reform, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Hospital EHR Stimulus, Meaningful Use, Physician EMR Stimulus, Privacy & Security ARRA, Electronic Health Records, eligible professional incentives for electronic medical records, Health Information Technology, HITECH Act, linkedin, Meaningful Use, meaningful use of certified EHR

On January 19, 2010, the Greater Louisville Health Enterprises Network together with Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, Bluegrass Chapter, will present a panel presentation with discussions surrounding the next steps under the Health Information Technology for Clinical and Economic Health Act (HITECH), part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009.

Expert panelists include:

Rick Chapman, CIO, Kindred Healthcare & Member, HITSP Panel
Kathie McDonald-McClure, Esq., Wyatt Tarrant & Combs, LLP
Joe DeVenuto, CIO, Norton Healthcare

Moderated by Greg Aaron, Past Chapter President Bluegrass HIMSS and Board Member, Health Enterprises Network

Time & Location:

5:30 – 6:00 p.m. Wine Reception.
6:00 – 7:30 p.m. Dinner & Panel Discussion
Sheraton Louisville, Riverside, 700 West Riverside Dr., Jeffersonville, IN 47130

Registration Information: $35 members; Tables available $245

Call 502-625-0179 or Email info@HealthEnterprisesNetwork.com

To learn more about the Health Enterprises Network, click here.

IOM Releases Top 100 Priorities for Comparative Effectiveness Research

June 30, 2009July 20, 2009 Kathie McDonald-McClure Comparative Effectiveness Research, Health care reform, HITECH Law ARRA, CER, Comparative Effectiveness Research, Health care reform, HITECH Act, Intitute of Medicine, IOM

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 placed a mandate on the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to recommend national priorities for research questions to be addressed by comparative effectiveness research (CER) and supported by the ARRA stimulus funds. Pursuant to this mandate, on June 30, 2009, the IOM released a report, titled Initial National Priorities for Comparative Effective Research (Report). As described by the IOM, the Report “establishes a working definition of CER, develops a priority list of research topics to be undertaken with ARRA funding using broad stakeholder input, and identifies the necessary requirements to support a robust and sustainable CER enterprise.”