Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA)

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ONC Head Dr. Donald Rucker Addresses open API's, Interoperability and Usability During WEDI Keynote

Press Release | Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange (WEDI) | August 23, 2017

Earlier this month, the Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange (WEDI), the nation’s leading nonprofit authority on the use of health IT to create efficiencies in healthcare information exchange and a trusted advisor to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), held its 2017 Summer Forum which featured keynote addresses by Donald W. Rucker, MD, head of the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC/HHS) and Madhu Annadata, director, Division of National Standards, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)...

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Precision Medicine: Analytics, Data Science and EHRs in the New Age

John Andrews | Healthcare IT News | August 15, 2016

The promise of genomics and personalized care are closer than many realize. But clinical systems and EHRs are not ready yet. While policymakers and innovators play catch-up, here’s a look at what you need to know. Considering how fast technology advances in the healthcare industry, it seems natural that a once-innovative concept could become obsolete in the span of, say, a dozen years. Knowledge, comprehension and capabilities continue moving forward, and if the instruments of support don't keep pace, it can cause a rift to appear. If nothing is done, it can exacerbate into a seismic event...

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Rethinking MACRA, a Follow Up by John Halamka

In my blog posts, I speak from the heart without a specific political or economic motivation. Although I’ve not written about highly controversial subjects such as religion, gun control, or reproductive policy, some of the topics in my posts can be polarizing. Such as was the case with MACRA. Some agreed with my initial analysis that clinicians will have a hard time translating complex MACRA payment processes into altered clinical behavior. Others felt I was overharsh, negative and inappropriate. It’s never my intent to criticize people, instead I want encourage dialog about ideas. In that spirit, here’s my opinion on how we should evolve from fee for service to pay for value/outcomes...

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StayWell Adds SMART on FHIR App to Krames CareEngage Solution, Increasing Integration Capabilities Across Care Systems

Press Release | StayWell Company | February 21, 2017

The StayWell Company announced today that Krames CareEngageTM powered by Doctella now features a SMART on FHIR application. The SMART on FHIR application is available for testing with clients who use CareEngage for patient education and care management. StayWell will demonstrate the CareEngage solution during #HiMSS17 at booth 3443. CareEngage is an interactive platform that addresses real-world health needs, such as patient compliance and chronic conditions, by keeping patients better informed and engaged in their care...

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The Blockchain Interview with Jason Goldwater

Mr HIStalk | HIStalk | April 3, 2017

There are three, initially, that it has the potential to solve. First is access to data. The way that systems have been set up in hospitals or large integrated physician networks is that the data will either reside in a centralized server or now the trend is to reside it in a cloud. That’s fine and that certainly has been effective, but you’re talking about a large consolidation of data in a centralized location. Blockchain is very different because it is what is known as distributed ledger technology...

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The CMS and ONC Final Rules Arrive

Steve Posnack from ONC declared today IT Bonanza Day. The Interoperability Roadmap, CMS Meaningful Use Final Rules with a Comment Period (Stage 2 and 3) as well as the ONC 2015 Certification Rule were published today...Here’s my first impression: It remains to be seen how the comment period on the EHR Incentive Programs final rule will be used to align the Meaningful Use program  with the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) effort. It would not surprise me that the CMS final rules are not really final...

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Understanding Effect of EHR Usability on Clinical Workflows

Sara Heath | EHR Intelligence | August 26, 2016

As EHR use becomes ubiquitous in the healthcare industry, questions about EHR usability come into play. Read More »

What Does the Trump Presidency Imply for Healthcare and Healthcare IT?

Many organizations have asked me to comment on the impact of the Trump Presidency on Healthcare and Healthcare IT. I served the Bush administration for 4 years and the Obama administration for 6 years. I know that change in Washington happens incrementally. There is always an evolution, not a revolution, regardless of speechmaking hyperbole. What am I doing in Massachusetts? I’m staying the course, continuing my focus on social networking for healthcare, mobile, care management analytics, cloud, and security while leaving the strategic plan/budget as is...

What’s Next in Federal Healthcare Policy? Two Industry Observers Offer Predictions

Mark Hagland | Healthcare Informatics | March 14, 2017

On Monday, March 13, Healthcare Informatics Editor-in-Chief Mark Hagland interviewed two healthcare industry observers regarding current developments in federal healthcare policy. Hagland interviewed Jeremy Miller and Miranda Franco just hours before the news broke of the “scoring” of the American Health Care Act (AHCA), the healthcare legislation introduced by Republican leaders of the House of Representatives on March 6, to replace elements of the health insurance provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), passed by Congress and signed into law in March2010 by President Barack Obama...

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