In order to reflect advancements in medical knowledge and technology, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has mandated all health organizations begin use of the ICD-10 code set no later than October 1, 2015. This conversion will require tremendous effort from the health care community. The conversion to ICD-10 is daunting. Due to the numerous upgrades that will be needed to both software systems and manual processes, health care providers must begin preparing now. Those who do not
Read More
Healthcare Policy Regulation & Reform | News, Analysis, Insights - HIT Consultant
Payers Form ICD-10 Consortium to Help Smaller Providers with ICD-10 Readiness
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, Humana, and other payers have joined together to form the ICD-10 Consortium to help smaller providers with the transition to ICD-10, reports ICD-10 Monitor.
ICD-10 Consortium Plans
The consortium members goal is to meet with healthcare provider specialty groups, such as cardiology, dermatology, etc. to prioritize the ICD-9 codes they use most, then map them into ICD-10 codes. By identifying their top 25 ICD-9 codes, these smaller practices can help gauge
Read More
ICD-10 is the Pathway to Big Data in Healthcare
If big data in healthcare is the future for medicine, then ICD-10 is the way to get there.
Over the past year, most of the news surrounding the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) has been either bureaucratic or comical in nature. Last fall, another delay of the new coding system’s implementation deadline was met with a ton of mixed feelings. Most organizations truly weren’t ready. In fact, in a survey of 1300 healthcare professionals, 55% agreed with the
Read More
19.7M “Clinically Inappropriate” Physician Referrals Occur Each Year
Research from Kyruus highlights how "clinically inappropriate physician referrals" can lead to poor patient care and costly inefficiencies.
Nearly 20 million times a year in the U.S., patients are sent to a doctor who is not the right match for their specific condition. This is one of many key stats in the new physician referrals survey conducted by Kyruus,that highlights the massive issues in the doctor-patient referral system.
Why does this matter? “Clinically inappropriate” referrals
Read More
Half of Providers Unsure of ICD-10 Revenue Impact
Nearly half of healthcare providers are unsure of the ICD-10 revenue impact or have yet conducted revenue impact assessments, according to a new eHealth Initiative (eHI)/AHIMA survey. In fact, 35 percent
believed that their organization’s revenue will decrease during the first year of ICD-10 compliance.
The report provides a look at just how prepared healthcare organizations are for the upcoming ICD-10 implementation and how they think ICD-10 will impact their operations. Survey respondents
Read More
Infographic: ICD-10 Could Help Track Ebola Outbreak
As the Ebola outbreak heightens after a Dallas nurse was diagnosed with the virus after caring for Ebola victim Thomas Eric Duncan before he died at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital reveals a brewing public health concern. Currently, there is no specific ICD-9 code for Ebola and is classified as 078.89, Other specified diseases due to viruses. The lack of specificity in patient data limits the U.S.'s ability to immediately track and respond to the Ebola outbreak from a public health
Read More
mHealth: The Most Underutilized Force in Patient Engagement?
When was the last time you touched your cell phone? Did you just look at it sitting next to you or feel for it in your pocket? Maybe you're already reading this article right now on your phone.
The latest craze over the release of the iPhone 6 has just proven again how much people love their phones. Hundreds of people waited in lines for hours or even slept overnight trying to be one of the first to get their hands on Apple's latest design. More than 10 million phones were sold over the debut
Read More
Pioneer ACOs Dropout: Why Are Providers Leaving in Droves?
What is driving the high Pioneer ACOs dropout rate? Laura Beerman, Director at Decision Resources Group (DRG) explains the key drivers behind the trend.
Three years ago, CMS launched the Pioneer ACO program with 32 healthcare organizations designed to work in coordination with private payers by aligning provider incentives, which will improve quality and health outcomes for patients across the ACO, and achieve cost savings for Medicare, employers and patients. Today, only 19 providers
Read More
Sytrue Partners with XIFIN to Improve Billing Practices & Enhance Reimbursement
SyTrue, Inc., a healthcare information services provider and developer of proprietary technologies used to translate unstructured medical data into useable clinical information, announced today it has entered into a multi-year agreement with XIFIN Inc., a leading provider of financial and health economic optimization solutions for diagnostic service providers.
The three-year agreement initially supports two service areas: First, XIFIN will use SyTrue’s innovative patent-pending technologies
Read More
ICD-10: Bracing for Minimal Disruption to Your Healthcare Organization
ICD-10 is the largest healthcare mandate in history: Are You Ready? Many in healthcare are focused on meeting the requirements of the Affordable Care Act, but ask clinicians and they will tell you it is the upcoming conversion to ICD-10 that has their undivided attention. Why?
- The precision documentation requirements are exponentially higher than what was required by ICD-9
- For the first time, ICD-10 puts the responsibility for accurate coding solely in the hands of the physician.
-
Read More
