About one out of five Americans with serious illness struggled to access care during the pandemic, and rates were significantly higher among disadvantaged populations, a 2022 study found. Now, as mental health-related visits in emergency departments (EDs) continue to rise, healthcare professionals must consider: “How can we create better behavioral health supports for people in crisis?”
It's a question that has significant implications for quality of care as well as cost.
The High Cost of
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Exploring The Value of Metaverse Use Cases in Life Sciences
What once seemed like science fiction, interacting with people across the world has become the new normal. While we have become increasingly accustomed to video calls and instant communication in recent years, forays into virtual worlds and extended realities are still relatively novel.
In a post-Covid world, it seems strange to think that video conferences and calls were not the norm only three years ago. But the value created by virtual interactions during the last several years has
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How Search Makes Clinical Natural Language Processing Useful in the Real World
Clinical Natural Language Understanding (cNLU), the technology by which computers extract meaning from clinical text, is quickly becoming a common feature in the healthcare IT landscape. In 2021, 30% of surveyed healthcare organizations were either using or exploring the technology. (Gradient Flow, 2021). Similar adoption is occurring in the UK as well. (Wu et. al, Nature, 2022). Today, cNLU is being applied to billing/coding, trial enrollment, registry creation, clinical decision support,
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5 Trends to Look for in Healthcare Cost Transparency
Over two years have passed since the hospital price transparency rule was enacted. Unfortunately, America still struggles with high, painfully opaque pricing across healthcare that hurts employers, workers, patients, and taxpayers. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently announced that in 2021, the nation spent $4.3 trillion on healthcare, nearly twice the average of other nations in the developed world. Noncompliance and price gouging still exist in a market where consumers are
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The Patient Data Bill of Rights
While the United States is generally viewed as one of the great nations with a bill of rights, views differ considerably regarding whether the country has an enlightened approach to healthcare; especially contentious is the ability to provide universal, cost-effective access. I believe all patients in the United States should have basic inalienable rights regarding their personal health information. Therefore, I propose this Patient Data Bill of Rights, and believe it should be mandated by
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Healthcare in Denial: The State of Claims in 2023
How do you solve a persistent and growing problem like claims denials?
It’s been a hot topic for revenue cycle management professionals for years that’s only getting hotter with the increasing pressures of staffing shortages, challenges with staff turnover and training and ever-changing policies and protocols at the government and payer levels.
On the macro-economic level, denials contribute mightily to the growing problem of uncompensated care in America, currently estimated at $43
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Are Hospitals Ready for Alzheimer’s Treatment Approval?
The FDA’s recent accelerated approval of Leqembi was welcome news across the Alzheimer’s community. However, few health systems, medical practices, or providers are prepared for the extraordinary public interest in a treatment for Alzheimer’s disease – especially not one targeting mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and early dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease – that is likely headed their way soon. The unprecedented scale of the public health and marketing campaigns, the high prevalence of MCI in
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Accelerating Clinical Trials Through AI-Enabled Precision Oncology
The American Cancer Society’s Cancer Statistics 2023 report highlighted a few major accomplishments within oncology, such as decreased cancer mortality rates and increased trial diversity. However, there is still much work to be done. Especially with the multiple types of new and ongoing challenges clinicians and staff members are facing - such as high turnover rates, decreased budgets and increased feelings of burnout - taking the necessary steps to enhance clinical trial procedures is crucial
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New Medical Billing Codes You Should Know About
Physicians need to keep their billing and coding right to ensure seamless reimbursements from payers. Similarly, they should stay updated with the latest coding changes to keep their revenue cycle intact. In addition, running a successful medical practice is a daunting task as the providers need to stay updated with the industry guidelines. The year 2023 is bringing changes in medical codes to help providers reduce their burden and streamline patient care. So, providers need to stay focused on
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Opioid Settlements are Making Headlines; Is Now The Time to Soften Guidelines?
The United States only represents five percent of the world’s population; however, Americans consume 80 percent of the world’s opioids.1 The U.S. is the world’s leader in the use of opioid medications to cope with physical and emotional difficulties. And the recent Walgreens and Wal-Mart multi-state opioid settlement agreement disclosures have only hammered home the point. America continues to have an opioid addiction problem.
In light of all these circumstances, the recent CDC
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