Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)

Feds outline Medicare incentives for e-prescribing

Anne Zieger — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 18:14:22 -0400

Now that the Medicare bill has passed, a new set of e-prescribing incentives will soon be rolling out as well. This week, HHS leaders spelled out just how the incentives would work. The incentives are intended to offset the costs of implementing the new technology, which should cost each doctor about $3,000 to adopt, along with monthly costs of roughly $80 to $400 to maintain their e-prescribing system, according to CMS Administrator Kerry Weems.

Under the new law, physicians who adopt e-prescribing technology in 2009 and 2010 will get a 2 percent bonus in their Medicare payments. Later, in 2011 and 2012, physicians who adopt e-prescribing will get a 1 percent bonus. Those who adopt in 2013 will get a 0.5 percent bonus. Meanwhile, those who don't adopt e-prescribing will pay a growing penalty, starting with a Medicare payment cut of 1 percent in 2012, 1.5 percent in 2013 and 2 percent in 2014.

To learn more about CMS's plans:
- read this Associated Press article

SC plans to launch Medicaid HIE

Anne Zieger — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 09:28:30 -0400

South Carolina officials have set plans to launch a health information exchange for the state's 700,000 Medicaid patients. The South Carolina Health Information Exchange, known as SCIEx, will connect hospitals, doctors, clinics and other healthcare providers with access to Medicaid beneficiaries' medical records. It was paid for by HHS, which contributed $250,000 to implement the system. It's also backed by the South Carolina Hospital Association, the South Carolina Primary Care Association and several state agencies.

The SCIEx system includes a records locator service along with a system that links disparate health databases. Providers will now have access to a broad medical history on patients, including diagnoses, medications and test results. Officials say this will be particularly helpful for beneficiaries who live in rural areas and may only get sporadic care or see varied doctors, as it will make sure that their histories travel with them. They also note that the new HIE should save money for the state, since it will avoid a wide range of paper, printing and storage costs.

To learn more about the HIE:
- read this article from The Greenville News

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HHS awards contract for medical identity fraud study

Anne Zieger — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 16:18:17 -0400

HHS's Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology has awarded a $450,000 contract to Booz Allen Hamilton to scope out the size of the medical identity theft problem in the U.S. ONCHIT defines medical identity theft as when a person's identifiable health information is improperly used by another part to obtain medical goods or services, or to submit false medical services claims. To date, note ONCHIT officials, no one is quite sure how widespread the problem is, but it seems likely that it's extensive--and anecdotal evidence suggests that the problem is growing. To address this issue, Booz Allen will assess the scope of the problem, hold a meeting to discuss how to fix it, then produce a report on how to proceed.

To find out more about this issue:
- read this iHealthBeat article

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Federal HIT coordination office releases five-year plan

Mon, 09 Jun 2008 06:59:57 -0400

HHS's Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONCHIT) has released its five-year strategic plan, designed to help federal agencies synch up their health IT efforts. While the plan is broad, it does dig into two key goals: fostering patient-focused healthcare and population health.

To meet the "patient focused healthcare" goal, ONCHIT would like to see a transition to using electronic health records. Specifically, the agency wants to see private, secure, interoperable data sharing systems adopted, with a collective governance system in place to help guide the emergence of a shared health IT infrastructure. The population health goal, meanwhile, is to provide appropriate access to, and use of electronic health information to boost public health, biomedical research, quality improvement and emergency preparedness.

In addition to describing its broad goals, the ONCHIT report establishes timelines for achieving more than 40 milestones, in areas including adoption, interoperability, privacy and security. The report also provides a useful summary of electronic health information projects underway at agencies across the entire range of the federal government, from AHRQ to the Veterans' Administration.

To learn more about the plan:
- read ONCHIT's report (.pdf)
- read this iHealthBeat item

MN lawmakers approve e-prescribing measure

Tue, 27 May 2008 06:59:55 -0400

The Minnesota state legislature has approved a broad healthcare bill that would, among other things, require physicians, pharmacists and others who prescribe or dispense medication in the state to use electronic prescribing as of 2011.

The bill also creates new rules intended to boost quality and price transparency and tie payment to care coordination and performance. For example, the state would create a "healthcare home" certification by July 2009; clinics earning the designation would encourage primary care use, develop comprehensive care plans and focus on those who have or are at risk of developing chronic conditions.

To learn more about the state's e-Rx initiative:
- read this Modern Healthcare article (reg. req.)

Related Articles:
Coalition wants e-prescribing included in Medicare reform
HHS head encourages payers to demand e-prescribing
Group says controlled-substance rules block e-prescribing
E-prescribing: What's holding it back?

ALSO NOTED: CMS official admits industry unready for NPI switchover; HHS to announce EMR demo project participants; and much mo

Tue, 27 May 2008 06:59:50 -0400

> Now, even CMS officials are admitting that the industry may not have been prepared for last week's deadline for switching over to using the National Provider Identifier for Medicare claims processing. Article

> HHS will soon announce which 30 communities it has chosen to participate in its EMR demonstration project, under which participating doctors will get Medicare incentive payments for using certified systems. Article

> Maryland-based Erickson Retirement Communities is working with three Baltimore-area health systems to create a health information exchange. Article

> A group of specialist volunteers soon plan to begin offering long-distance telemedical consultations over the Internet to physicians trapped in war zones. Article

And Finally... Want to relax, but too tired to travel? Try a 'staycation.' Article

Non-profit hospitals offering EMRs to MDs, but cautiously

Mon, 19 May 2008 06:59:57 -0400

It's been about a year since the IRS officially declared that under the right circumstances, it was perfectly fine with not-for-profit hospitals and systems giving EMRs to affiliated physicians. Since that time, the not-for-profits have gradually begun to take advantage of the ruling, though many have spent a long time feeling things out before they moved ahead.

That may be, in part, because like all IRS gifts, the memo came with obligations, too. For example, the agency's memo requires that hospitals be able to access the records the physicians create with the technology the hospital donated--at least within HIPAA guidelines and state privacy rules. Another rule is that the EMRs must be made available to all physicians with staff privileges at a given facility, and that the subsidy must be the same for everyone or vary by criteria related to community needs.

Over the past year, not-for-profits have worked cautiously, careful to set up EMRs that comply with these and other conditions, as well as conforming with HHS rules on this subject. For example, while planning the rollout of its $8.3 million rollout of GE's Centricity system, Falls Church, Va.-based Inova Health System has stayed in touch with the IRS to make sure they're in compliance. Inova is offering the 3,000 community physicians on staff with its hospitals a deeply discounted per-physician fee for assessment, planning, training, implementation and licensing of the EMR.

To learn more about this trend, including several hospital and health system examples:
- read this Modern Healthcare article (reg. req.)

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Group discourages far-reaching patient data use consents

Mon, 19 May 2008 06:59:55 -0400

While it may make health organizations feel better, it's not a good idea to ask patients to offer blanket consents for many levels of health data disclosure according to a new report by the Health Privacy Project of the Center for Democracy and Technology. Instead of building a health data sharing infrastructure by asking patients to give permission for all data uses, the group says, consumers are better served by a more tightly-controlled system. Health data sharing infrastructures should include audit trails, technical safeguards and systematic enforcement in addition to getting consent for data sharing and giving notice of where the data will go. To date, they warn, much of the discussion around sharing patient data has positioned privacy as an 'obstacle,' "but it's clear the opposite is true," says Deven McGraw of the CDT's Health Privacy Project. "Enhanced privacy and security...will bolster consumer trust and confidence and spur a more rapid adoption of health IT."

To learn more about the report:
- read this Healthcare IT News article

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ALSO NOTED: Latest NPI deadline poses big problems, report says; Allscripts/Misys deal could offer $850 opp to Allscripts; and

Mon, 19 May 2008 06:59:50 -0400

> If providers needed to hear it again, here's more support for their position. Another report has concluded that new deadline for for using the National Provider Identifier will create big problems for many of them. Article

> One analyst is predicting that the merger of Allscripts and Misys could create a $850 million market opportunity for Allscripts. Article

> The AMA is asking Congress to make HHS set national standards for e-prescribing by the end of 2009. Article

> Cincinnati researchers are studying whether text messages might help teenagers adhere to their medication regimens. Studies suggest that on average, only 50 percent of adolescents follow treatment regimens properly. Article

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Coalition wants e-prescribing included in Medicare reform

Mon, 05 May 2008 06:59:57 -0400

A coalition of 44 healthcare industry organizations have come together to ask Congress to to include e-prescribing mandates in Medicare reform legislation. The members want legislators to adopt the Medicare Electronic Medication and Safety Protection Act of 2007 (E-MEDS), which would require Medicare providers to use e-prescribing technology. The group should have some clout, as it includes some heavy hitters, including the BlueCross BlueShield Association, AT&T, the National Business Group on Health, General Motors, WellPoint, CIGNA, Aetna and Verizon.

In recent times, it's begun to look like a Medicare e-prescribing mandate is all but certain. However, despite these endorsements, it hasn't happened yet, and it's not clear whether HHS is inclined to force the matter.

To learn more about this initiative:
- read this Modern Healthcare article (reg. req.)

Related Articles:
Momentum growing for requiring Medicare e-prescribing
HHS head encourages payers to demand e-prescribing
Group says controlled-substance rules block e-prescribing
E-prescribing: What's holding it back?