initiatives

$105M awarded for statewide EMR system in NY

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 07:59:58 -0400

For the state of New York, it looks like the future is now. The state's Department of Health recently awarded 19 healthcare information technology projects $105 million in grant money in order to create a statewide electronic medical record system. According to Modern Healthcare, some key initiatives of the projects will be "electronically linking Medicare patients' eligibility," and giving patients "access and control" over their records. Ninety-six hospitals throughout the state are slated to participate in the project.

For more:
- read the article in Modern Healthcare (reg. req.)

Are your PHRs safe?

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 07:59:54 -0400

We've said it before and we'll say it again: The fact that several of the PHR initiatives launched by bigger companies such as Google and Microsoft don't fall under HIPAA medical privacy rules is a little bit scary. While some states have passed "additional privacy standards" to try to keep the Googles and the Microsofts in check by allowing users to control how much access others have to their information, patients ultimately need to understand each individual company's privacy policies and terms of use. I don't know about you, but it seems that with all the recent leaks in medical information, thinking twice about which route you choose for your PHRs wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing at all.

For more:
- read iHealthBeat's article

Senate approves HIT fund

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 07:59:58 -0400

Last week, the Senate approved a budget amendment that would create a reserve fund for health IT legislation. Without getting too deep into procedural stuff, the net effect of the amendment will be that when a Senator wants to file an HIT-related bill, the money will be there to back it up. Otherwise, Senators might have to do gyrations explaining how each of their individual initiatives would fund themselves. While no dollar amount has been specified for the fund, Hill staffers expect that it will provide enough money to fund HIT bills for the next five years. The same bill will also fund further development of an interoperable EMR for the departments of Defense and Veteran's Affairs, an effort that has been all but stalled for a while.

To learn more about the fund:
- read this iHealthBeat item

SPOTLIGHT: Frist supports payments for EMR-using MDs

Mon, 03 Mar 2008 06:59:52 -0500

Well, it may not be a novel idea--but it never hurts to get more support for initiatives that involve spending money. Dr. Bill Frist, a physician and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader, told the HIMSS audience that he believes Medicare should offer an extra 1 to 2 percent reimbursement to doctors who implement EMRs. Article

SPOTLIGHT: Ten tips for HIE success

Mon, 26 Nov 2007 06:59:52 -0500

Sure, setting up a smart structure for governing a shared HIE makes sense. But without good technology planning, governance models aren't going to make much of a difference in your HIE's success, suggests Joel Diamond, M.D. In his view, there are 10 key factors health care organizations need to consider when planning for HIE initiatives, including a good understanding of service-oriented architectures, a clear understanding of what value the data can provide and a streamlined workflow. Article

ALSO NOTED: EMR controversy at UC Davis; EMRs still a priority; and much more...

Sun, 18 Mar 2007 20:01:30 -0400

> Controversy continues to rage over a faltering UC Davis EMR project, for which the lead was paid a hefty bonus despite allegedly missed deadlines and implementation problems with the project. Blog

> EMRs are still the top HIT priority for most executives, but other applications are catching up, according to a new study from Modern Healthcare. Article

> A healthcare technology consultant maps out where he believes major vendors like Microsoft, Oracle and Cisco will go their their HIT initiatives. Blog

> A physician looks at the pluses and minuses of free, ad-supported EMRs like the one provided by Practice Fusion (see related story above). He's rather skeptical that this model can provide appropriate privacy safeguards. Blog

And Finally... Which health IT companies are Wall Street's favorites? Article

2007 a tough year for health IT legislation?

Sun, 07 Jan 2007 19:01:38 -0500

Many healthcare policy wonks are speculating that 2007 will be a big year for health IT legislation. Observers say that while some health IT measures got stuck on the Hill in 2006, in the coming year legislators are likely to see health IT as a priority. With the private sector signaling that it's more than ready for health IT change--supporting data-driven initiatives such as PHRs, EMRs and pay-for-performance schemes--legislators have gotten the message that the market is ready to move.

However, Joseph Goedert of Health Data Management is less optimistic about the new Congress's ability to pass health IT legislation. For one thing, in 2006 health IT had the support of the Bush administration as well as a number of influential members of Congress, but little progress was made. Now Congress and the President are from different parties, which won't do much to help the matter. Goedert outlines a number of other issues that could make health IT legislation challenging in 2007.

To get a look at the year ahead:
- check out this Health Data Management article

Related Article:
Health IT legislation likely in '07. Report

Smaller practices still behind in IT adoption

Sun, 12 Nov 2006 19:01:37 -0500

A new report suggests that groups of nine or less physicians are still way behind larger groups when it comes to adopting clinical information technology. In some cases, in fact, the gap between large and small groups is growing, according to new research by the Center for Studying Health System Change. From 2000 to 2005, far more large practices than small practices adopted technology for accessing patient notes, generating preventive care reminders and writing prescriptions. For example, during the five-year period studied, the number of smaller practices adoption e-prescribing climbed 5 percent, but adoption by larger practices grew 28 percent. If something doesn't happen to help smaller groups step up, clinical IT adoption could come to a standstill. After all, roughly one-third of all physicians work in a practice with three or fewer physicians, and nearly 20 percent more work in practices with three to nine physicians, according to the CSHSC. At the moment, however, few public or private clinical IT initiatives are targeting small groups, researchers note.

For more on physician IT adoption trends:
- read this United Press International piece
- check out this report from the Center for Studying Health System Change

Related Articles:
Will insurers fuel EMR adoption? Editorial
NH governor pushes physician e-prescribing. Report
D.C. hospital finds e-prescribing security hole. Report

States ramp up health e-data exchange

Sun, 23 Jul 2006 20:01:33 -0400

States are showing signs of life when it comes to promoting regional health information organizations and other health data exchanges, according to preliminary results of a 165-program survey. Washington-based eHealth Initiative, an advocacy group, surveyed health data exchange programs in 49 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. It found that twenty-four states have enacted legislation to facilitate data exchange initiatives, such as forming a task force to study issues or authorizing creation of a strategy.

Thirty-eight states are participating in dialogue with other stakeholders on data exchange initiatives, with 21 states actually convening stakeholders and being actively engaged. For instance, 16 states provide staff in a project management role and 17 help fund regional or local date exchange projects, according to the survey.

For more information on the study:
- see this article from Health Data Management
- and the eHealth Initiative's Web site