The nation's mass conversion to electronic health records isn't the only seismic shift on the horizon in health IT. Even before the economic stimulus legislation passed earlier this year, healthcare organizations already had been busy planning for the transition to ICD-10 coding by October 2013, and the related switch to ANSI X12 5010 standards for HIPAA transactions by January 2012. And unlike the Medicare and Medicaid EHR program that will pay bonuses for adopting technology--and eventually impose penalties for not using EHRs--the 5010 and ICD-10 codes will be mandatory if you want your Medicare claims paid.

ICD-10 is a particularly hot topic for the health information management community, meaning it is an important part of the AHIMA conference agenda. One of the breakout tracks on the afternoon of Monday, Oct. 5, starting at 1 p.m., is devoted to ICD-10. Part of the first-ever AHIMA Prime Time session on Monday morning will delve into "Leadership and the ICD-10 Strategic Advantage," plus there's a full day of ICD-10 training (levels 1 and 2) in a post-conference workshop on Thursday, Oct. 8.