News 7/28/11

Michigan Eye Institute chooses SRS ERH for its eight provider, five-location practice.

MGMA calls on HHS to withdraw its proposed HIPAA accounting of disclosures rule, which would require practices that maintain an EMR to have the capability to produce a detailed report of every instance a patient’s information is accessed by any staff member for any reason, including claims submittal.  MGMA notes that because over 90% of surveyed members believe the proposed rule would be “very” or “extremely” burdensome, an unintended consequence could be that practices avoid implementing EMRs.

Ampla Health chooses MED3OOO’s InteGreat EHR for its eleven FQHC and community health centers.

Telemedicine and telehealth technologies may address an increased need for quality healthcare in rural locations, according to a report by the UnitedHealth Center for Health Reform & Modernization. The report calls for the expansion of broadband connectivity to facilitate telemedicine adoption, a reduction of regulatory barriers for using telemedicine technologies, and improving and aligning reimbursement to encourage greater telemedicine use across rural settings.

Five providers from Aquidneck Medical Associates (RI) are among the first in the state to receive an $18,000 check for their Meaningful Use of eClinicalWorks’ EHR.

Kremer Eye Center (PA) selects NexTech’s EMR/PM and marketing software for its 11 surgeons and eight optometrists.

DrFirst introduces EPCS Gold version 2.0, which support electronic prescribing of controlled substances, based on individual state laws and the ability of the receiving pharmacy to meet DEA’s requirements to process the prescriptions.

HITEC-LA, the REC for Los Angeles, adds Greenway Medical to its list of preferred EHR vendors.

Epocrates announces first phase availability of its Epocrates EHR mobile and Web-based EHR, which is designed for primary care practices with 10 or fewer physicians. Epocrates will also offer a license to a native Apple iPhone app that supports remote patient look-patient look-up, schedule access, and e-prescribing capabilities.

Physician offices added 5,000 new jobs in June; the healthcare sector as a whole added 13,500 jobs.

Almost half of physicians who use digital tools to access prescription drug information would like to view the information on their smartphones or iPads, according to a Manhattan Research report.

Please join me in welcoming Preceptor Consulting as HIStalk Practice’s newest Platinum sponsor. Preceptor provides HIT training and support services and over the last five years has provided system design, building, testing, and go-live support for over 500 facilities. Preceptor specializes in EMR support and resources for multiple systems, including Epic, Cerner, McKesson, Allscripts, Napochi, and NextGen. Mr. H and I are very thankful for Preceptor’s support of both HIStalk Practice and HIStalk.

The AMA and 91 other medical associations send a letter to Dr. Donald Berwick expressing concern that healthcare providers will not have enough time to react to CMS’s newly proposed changes to the e-prescribing program.  Specifically, the medical associations contend that providers won’t have time to apply for exemptions and are concerned that CMS has not provided an additional reporting period in 2012 for physicians who don’t comply with the 2011 e-prescribing requirements. The medical groups assert there should be no penalties applied until 2013 against a physician facing a 2012 e-prescribing penalty.

E-mail Inga.