Tag: Medicaid

Federal agencies offer updates on TEFCA, interoperability milestones

Federal agencies offer updates on TEFCA, interoperability milestones

Healthcare IT news

On February 13, the government leaders thanked the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT and six Qualified Health Information Networks (QHIN) for working to create a nationwide interoperability network under the 21st Century Cures Act. The ‘Network of Networks’ 
At the U.S. Department of Health and Human services, Secretary Xavier Becerra presented certificates of recognition to the CommonWell Health Alliance, eHealth Exchange, Epic TEFCA Interoperability Services, Health Gorilla, Kno2 and KONZA for moving into the pre-production testing process of the Trusted Exchange Framework and the Common Agreement.
With the framework, ONC and the Sequoia Project, TEFCA’s recognized coordinating entity, seek to establish…

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CDS Coalition requests FDA rescind final decision support guidance

CDS Coalition requests FDA rescind final decision support guidance

Healthcare IT news

The CDS Coalition is asking the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to pull back on its clinical decision support guidance in order to ensure that the agency better balances its regulatory oversight with the healthcare sector’s need for innovation, while comporting with the statutory language of the 21st Century Cures Act. ‘Flagrant’ disregard for Congressional law and intent
The coalition’s stakeholders – clinical decision support software developers, patient advocacy organizations, clinical societies, healthcare providers and healthcare payers – say the FDA’s guidance exceeds Congress’s statutory definitions of what is considered CDS and threatens to undermine lawmakers’ goals.
“The Office of the National Coordinator for…

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Florida ACO achieves value-based care goals with real-time patient data platform

Florida ACO achieves value-based care goals with real-time patient data platform

Healthcare IT news

Achieving value-based care goals remains a difficult challenge for many providers who also are trying hard to provide equitable care. Pathways Health Partners, an accountable care organization that works with more than 280 providers across multiple clinical specialties, works with organizations to address these issues.THE PROBLEM
“Ensuring access to patient records in real time, regardless of where patient care is delivered, was an ongoing hurdle for our organization,” said Ricardo Matos, CIO at Pathways. “It was a significant limitation with regard to our providers making timely, informed care decisions.
“And we knew from our experience working with partners over the years that trying…

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Bipartisan House bill proposes permanent telehealth benefits

Bipartisan House bill proposes permanent telehealth benefits

Healthcare IT news

The Telehealth Benefit Expansion for Workers Act would amend the Public Health Service Act, the Employee Retirement Income and Security Act of 1974 and the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow employers to treat benefits for telehealth services like excepted benefits.WHY IT MATTERS
The bill aims to keep stand-alone telehealth benefits separate, not as a replacement of medical plans, offering them under a group health plan or group health insurance coverage as excepted benefits.
An excepted benefit allows employers to finance additional medical care, like vision or dental coverage, according to theCenters for Medicare & Medicaid Services FAQsfor insurance agents and brokers, requiring Congress…

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NYU develops health metrics dashboard for all 435 U.S. Congressional Districts

NYU develops health metrics dashboard for all 435 U.S. Congressional Districts

Healthcare IT news

Researchers at New York University Grossman School of Medicine say their new Congressional District Health Dashboard reveals stark geographic, racial and ethnic differences in health across the United States. They hope lawmakers and healthcare organizations can use the tool to better understand and address health inequities.WHY IT MATTERS
Incorporating health measures, such as deaths from cardiovascular disease and breast cancer, along with conditions that affect health like housing affordability and access to nutritious foods, has not been available at the congressional district level.
Offering a single publicly-accessible location, the Congressional District Health Dashboard was built to offer a comprehensive data view of persistent inequities across the…

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Omaha program uses HIE tech to improve postpartum care for minority parents and children

Omaha program uses HIE tech to improve postpartum care for minority parents and children

Healthcare IT news

CyncHealth, Collective Medical and Innsena are being recognized by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Racial Equity in Postpartum Care Challenge, including federal funding of $40,000, for their postpartum care program in Omaha.Pregnancy-related deaths are three to four times more common among minorities than among Caucasian women, even among those with a college degree. This program improves postpartum care for Black and Indigenous parents and children with high-risk conditions who participate in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and significantly reduces maternal and neonatal mortality.
Out of the 25 winners recognized by HHS, this program is the only one using health…

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Vendor Notebook: new tools and acquisitions from OptumRx, ScionHealth, others

Vendor Notebook: new tools and acquisitions from OptumRx, ScionHealth, others

Healthcare IT news

It’s a new year, and healthcare technology vendors are rolling out their latest innovations, market approvals, acquisitions and staffing shake-ups.OptumRx launched Price Edge, a tool that compares pricing for traditional generic drugs to ensure members get the lowest prescription drug prices. A suite of new tools for both patients and providers target aspects of pharmacy logistics that have been known to delay or complicate care, such as getting real-time pharmacy benefits information and obtaining prior authorizations. In October, Optum, UnitedHealth Group’s pharmacy services company, merged with data clearinghouse Change Healthcare. The U.S. Department of Justice tried to block the merger and is appealing the…

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What's ahead for health IT policy and legislation in 2023 

What’s ahead for health IT policy and legislation in 2023 

Healthcare IT news

With Congress providing telehealth waivers as part of its omnibus spending bill at the close of 2022, delaying the “telehealth cliff” for two years, HIMSS says it’s now ready to make the case for permanent reimbursement of virtual care.Also on its policy agenda for the year ahead: advocating for data standardization, offering input for interoperability rulemaking and engaging with agencies and states to increase telehealth access. We spoke with the HIMSS government relations team for their thoughts on those priorities and more in 2023 and beyond.
Making telehealth’s case for cost control
Telehealth has proven to reduce burdens on healthcare providers and improve…

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