News 8/23/11

Providers with Seton Healthcare Family (TX) receive $18K each from CMS for their Meaningful Use of eClinicalWorks EHR.

Urology EHR vendor meridianEMR files a lawsuit against competitor Intuitive Medical Software (UroChart), claiming UroChart cloned one of its servers and thereby gained illegal access to meridianEMR’s product and the protected health information stored by its clients. A federal judge denied meridianEMR’s request for a restraining order against UroChart, saying that it was not needed because a third party has control of the test server involved.  Update: meridianEMR sent us an e-mail saying that its request for a restraining order was not denied, but rather that the judge lifted the part of it involving the server that meridianEMR claims was used to copy its software. The court order requires IMS to turn the server over to a neutral third party.

While looking for more information on meridianEMR, I noticed the above chart on the company’s website. I must admit that if I were investing in an EMR, I’d be asking the vendor to provide this type information.  I like the transparency, even though 36 attestations (less than 4% of the company’s 1,000+ physician users)isn’t a terribly impressive figure.

Midwest Physicians Services (MN) selects Zotec Partners to provide billing services for its radiology clients.

About three-quarters of all US doctors will be sued for malpractice at some point in their career, though only about 22% of claims lead to payment. Surgeons, particularly neurosurgeons and obstetricians, have the highest risk of being sued. The average claim payment was about $275,000 in the 15-year, 41,000-physician study.

RCM provider PracticeMax acquires American Billing Services, which offers billing and PM services to physicians and hospitals.

Joint Commission designates AltaMed Health Services (CA) as the first organization to earn Primary Care Medical Home (PCMH) designation under its Ambulatory Care Accreditation Program.

GE Healthcare names Clerity Healthcare its exclusive systems integration solutions provider for GE Centricity Practice Solution and EMR.

Electronic Health Records of Rhode Island (EHRRI), a provider-led implementation services organization, donates its activities and operations to the Massachusetts eHealth Collaborative (MAeHC). Members of the former EHRRI team will provide a Rhode Island presence, provide EHR implementation and support, advisory services, and quality data warehousing and analysis via MAeHC’s proprietary Quality Data Center.

Hospitals are employing more physicians to grow market share and revenue, but the trend may lead to higher healthcare costs and does not guarantee clinical integration. That’s the conclusion of the Center for Studying Health System Change, which found that employed physicians face pressure from hospitals to order more expensive test alternatives  and that hospitals usually negotiate health plan contracts for their physicians at higher rates than physicians could negotiate independently.

E-mail Inga.