April 10, 2013 John DeGaspari
news
The Department of Health and Human Services today released its 2014 budget, providing $80.1 billion in discretionary funding, $3.9 billion above the 2012 enacted level. HHS said the budget continues to invest in Affordable Care Act implementation, medical research, mental health services, and Head Start, yet savings are achieved through trade-offs such as the elimination of the Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant, and reductions in the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program and the Community Services Block Grant.
February 27, 2013 John DeGaspari
blog
A team of physicians at the University of Michigan Health System recently compared two major healthcare reform efforts to provide broad access to healthcare—the Affordable Care Act of 2010 and a 1986 law known as EMTALA, which mandated universal access to emergency care. While neither law quite gets there, the physicians say, healthcare reform can still bring the nation closer to comprehensive, coordinated care for all.
January 15, 2013 Jeff Smith, Assistant Director of Advocacy at CHIME
article
According to officials at CMS, December was the single largest monthly payout of EHR incentives in the program’s history. Roughly $1.2 billion went to eligible hospitals and eligible physicians in December, bringing the total estimated payout to $10.3 billion. The bulk of the payments went to EHs, who received $1 billion in Medicare and Medicaid incentive payments. EPs received $175 million in Medicare payments and $80 million in Medicaid payments.
January 10, 2013 Rajiv Leventhal
news
Doctors and health care providers have formed 106 new Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) in Medicare, ensuring as many as four million Medicare beneficiaries now have access to high-quality, coordinated care across the United States, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced.
December 19, 2012 Rajiv Leventhal
news
The Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT), a Chicago-based nonprofit, has announced plans to develop an IT framework for accountable care organizations (ACOs). The framework will identify the health IT infrastructure components necessary for a provider organization to function effectively as an ACO and help identify any gaps that would prevent them from meeting their goals as an ACO.
December 18, 2012 Mark Hagland
article
More broadly, the shift towards a new population health-based focus, and towards authentic care management, is requiring not only bridges across the divide between care locations, but also intensive work to develop care delivery and management models healthcare system-wide. It goes without saying that this is difficult work; yet the leaders at many pioneering organizations are powering ahead, forging new paths without waiting for anyone to direct them to the new healthcare. And of course, they’re building new information systems and IT capabilities to support their innovations.
November 15, 2012 Mark Hagland
article
On his succession to the role of chairman at the not-for-profit collaborative known as the Scottsdale Institute, Donald Wegmiller offers his views on the trajectory of healthcare going forward, and what CIOs and CMIOs should be doing now to help lead their teams forward into the new healthcare.
November 8, 2012 Mark Hagland
article
In the wake of the Nov. 6 federal elections, Blair Childs, senior vice president for public affairs at the Charlotte-based Premier health alliance, spoke with HCI Editor-in-Chief Mark Hagland regarding the election’s implications for healthcare policy and healthcare IT policy
November 7, 2012 Gabriel Perna
article
Reactions have begun to pour from across the healthcare industry, in response to the re-election of President Barack Obama, and the maintaining of the House of Representatives by the Republicans and the Senate by the Democrats. According to Robin Raiford, director of research and insights at The Advisory Board Company, the re-election of President Obama along with the lack of af power in Congress, is good news for those leaders driving healthcare IT.
October 22, 2012 Mark Hagland
article
MGMA senior executives tell members of the media that their association's members are feeling hampered by policy and reimbursement uncertainty, and holding off on becoming involved in accountable care organizations and other innovative arrangements because of that uncertainty.
October 3, 2012 Karthik Ganesh
article
Changes in the industry landscape are forcing health plan leaders to reevaluate their value proposition while continuing to execute effectively on these core competencies. There is additional pressure on health plans to now be the engine that seamlessly powers the all-important patient-provider relationship. This is the perfect time for a health plan to embark on a transformation of its core service model, thereby putting itself in a position to capitalize on the service expectations associated with the changing industry landscape.
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