August 5, 2013 Mark Hagland
blog
A sometimes-heated discussion taking place in New York City around introducing a physician pay-for-performance program into that city’s immense public hospital system speaks to the broader debate around how best to transform U.S. healthcare
August 1, 2013 Rajiv Leventhal
news
The House Energy and Commerce Committee voted 51-0 to approve bipartisan legislation that would replace the current Medicare payment model— known as the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR)—with a stable system of payments to reimburse U.S. doctors.
July 31, 2013 Mark Hagland
blog
Though every healthcare IT leader and industry expert I interviewed for our July/August cover story package shared with me how complex their movement towards mobility has been so far, one very positive element in that overall movement is this: a strong clarity with regard to what the future holds, at least with regard to the big picture
July 29, 2013 Rajiv Leventhal
news
The Leapfrog Group, a Washington, D.C.-based healthcare-purchaser organization focused on patient safety and value, has launched a new online tool that allows purchasers to calculate how much they spend annually on unnecessary costs due to medical errors that occur within general acute care hospitals.
July 29, 2013 Mark Hagland
article
Compared with some industries, mobile computing came late to healthcare. But now, the revolution is accelerating—both on the clinician end-user side, and in the arena of clinician-patient communications and care management. How are IT leaders engaging clinicians and helping clinicians engage patients, in the emerging healthcare? CIOs and CMIOs are figuring out how to help their organizations survive--and thrive--in the emerging world of mobility.
July 25, 2013 Mark Hagland
blog
In late July, healthcare leaders brought forward concerns around the rigorous requirements of Stage 2 of meaningful use to federal officials at the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT and the Department of Health and Human Services. How might federal officials respond—and what kinds of concerns must they balance?
July 25, 2013 Mark Hagland
news
On July 23, the leaders of the Englewood, Colo.-based Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) sent a letter to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, asking her to reverse a newly announced policy regarding testing for the implementation of the ICD-10 coding system later this year.
July 25, 2013 Rajiv Leventhal
article
With a perfect storm of lower Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements and the specter additional budgetary cuts from Congress, even automated RCM systems are not up to snuff. How are hospitals, medical groups and integrated health systems preparing for new models of care delivery and reimbursement?
July 23, 2013 Mark Hagland
blog
If recent surveys are any indication, the leaders of physician groups nationwide are making the decision to move forward on absolutely needed clinical information technology implementation, despite the challenges inherent in a shifting reimbursement landscape.
July 21, 2013 Mark Hagland
article
The number of patient care organizations across the U.S. in which physician mobility is moving forward is growing daily. Among that throng is the 15-physician Vanguard Medical Group in northeastern New Jersey. In the case of Vanguard, participation in a statewide patient-centered medical home program, and creating its own visiting nurse program, spurred development of a mobile computing strategy.
July 20, 2013 Mark Hagland
article
Reid Conant, M.D. of the Tri-City Emergency Medical Group, a 23-doctor emergency physician practice in Oceanside, California, shares his perspectives on the role of speech recognition solutions in optimizing physician documentation processes in the emergency medicine sphere. One key point: it’s not about typing ability.
July 18, 2013 Rajiv Leventhal
news
The use of electronic health records (EHRs) can reduce the costs of outpatient care by roughly three percent, compared to relying on traditional paper records, according to a new study from the University of Michigan that examined more than four years of healthcare cost data in nine communities.
