By Wendy Johnson

HHS’ definition of meaningful use will include an organization’s ability to use health IT to improve quality and “inform clinical decisions at the point of care,” David Blumenthal, national coordinator for health information technology, wrote in an Oct. 1 letter to the industry.

CMS is expected to publish its formal definition of meaningful use by the end of the year. Expect it to require providers to use HIT to “reduce the amount of time spent on duplicative paperwork” so they can spend more time with patients, Blumenthal wrote.

“The concept of meaningful use is simple and inspiring, but we recognize that it becomes significantly more complex at a policy and regulatory level,” he added. “As a result, we expect that any formal definition of ‘meaningful use’ must include specific activities healthcare providers need to undertake to qualify for incentives from the federal government.”

Above article published on http://www.fiercehealthit.com/story/blumenthal-meaningful-use-must-result-quality-improvement-more-time-bedside-less-duplication/2

By Anne Zieger

It’s only been a few days since the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology issued a report explaining how it would meet new HIPAA privacy and security rules specified in the stimulus package.

Experts argue whether the new report, which spells out plans for complying with a stimulus act section known as High Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH), actually says anything novel. Some argue that deadlines for action spelled out in the document just match those in the stimulus plan, while others see the plans as a good first step.

Be that as it may, HHS has said that it will spend about $24.3 million on new privacy and security efforts, including carrying out regulatory and enforcement requirements of HITECH and training for state attorneys general, audits and reports to Congress.

New HIPAA provisions include language broadening privacy rules and penalties to include business associates; clarify that HIPAA’s criminal sanctions apply to employees or other individuals that wrongfully use or access PHI held by a covered entity; prohibit sales of PHI without prior consent; and allow state attorneys general to bring civil damages actions.

The question is whether any of these actions do much to step up HIPAA enforcement. After all, to date, vanishingly few HIPAA investigations have actually taken place. The question, it seems, is whether HHS will make use of the tools it has, much less new one

Above article published on

http://www.fiercehealthit.com/story/will-hitech-portion-stimulus-strengthen-hipaa/2009-05-26#ixzz0SZzpAFQY

State governments around the country are working to facilitate, and in some cases, enhance, Washington’s stimulus-funded incentives for doctors and hospitals that adopt new health information technology. “A group of the nation’s governors and state officials has released a guide for state implementation of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act,” the formal name for the portion of the stimulus bill, McKnight’s Long-Term Care News reports. A key recommendation is that state leaders create health information exchanges so providers can readily share information to improve coordination of care (8/7).

Meanwhile, members of the National Lieutenant Governors Association called for support of “advance interoperable health IT and its adoption among providers” in a resolution this week, Modern Healthcare reports. They call on states to adopt systems with the stamp of approval of the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology, a group affiliated with an e-health industry association (DerGurahian, 8/6).

Louisiana went a step further with “a bill that would create a loan program for physicians and hospitals hoping to buy an electronic health record system,” American Medical News reports. The state health department will seek other stimulus funding to seed the loans. The bill also will create the Louisiana Rural Health Information Exchange (Dolan, 8/6). (Other states, such as Maryland, have taken similar action in recent weeks).

At the local level, Florida officials are reviving two e-health projects in the Miami and Palm Beach areas to pursue the stimulus funding, the Sun-Sentinel reports. One project, run by the South Florida Health Information Exchange, had succeeded in digitizing the records for dozens of clinics and setting up protocols to share them with a local hospital, before funding dried up and the program became dormant (LaMendola, 8/6).

Above article published on

http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/Daily-Reports/2009/
August/07/Health-IT-Fri.aspx