Health Information Technology Updates
December 30, 2009
A Message from Dr. David Blumenthal, National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
As we look toward 2010, we can envision a transformation of our health system to improve health care quality, efficiency, equity, and safety through the use of health information technology (HIT), while providing the foundation for continued, measurable improvement in our nation's health. The adoption and meaningful use of information technology in health care is central to a necessary and overdue modernization of our health system.
As required by the HITECH Act, the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has published an initial set of standards, implementation specifications, and certification criteria to enhance the interoperability, functionality, utility, and security of health information technology. These criteria are outlined in thehttp://www.federalregister.gov/inspection.aspx#special"> interim final rule (IFR) on Standards & Certification Criteria issued 12/30/2009 by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC).
The IFR provides details on requirements for "certified" electronic health record (EHR) systems, and the technical specifications needed to support secure, interoperable, nationwide electronic exchange and meaningful use of health information.
In a related announcement, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued ahttp://www.federalregister.gov/inspection.aspx#special"> notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that outlines provisions governing the Medicare and Medicaid EHR incentive programs, including a proposed definition for the central concept of "meaningful use" of EHR technology. In order for professionals and hospitals to be eligible to receive payments under the incentive programs, provided through the Recovery Act, they must be able to demonstrate meaningful use of a certified EHR system. The proposed standards and certification criteria in the IFR are fundamentally linked to and specifically designed to support the 2011 meaningful use criteria.
Great care was taken in the development of these criteria, with input from the public and federal advisory committees every step of the way. The resulting standards and certification criteria in the IFR are organized into four categories as recommended by the HIT Policy Committee and HIT Standards Committee:
As required by the HITECH Act, the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has published an initial set of standards, implementation specifications, and certification criteria to enhance the interoperability, functionality, utility, and security of health information technology. These criteria are outlined in thehttp://www.federalregister.gov/inspection.aspx#special"> interim final rule (IFR) on Standards & Certification Criteria issued 12/30/2009 by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC).
The IFR provides details on requirements for "certified" electronic health record (EHR) systems, and the technical specifications needed to support secure, interoperable, nationwide electronic exchange and meaningful use of health information.
In a related announcement, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued ahttp://www.federalregister.gov/inspection.aspx#special"> notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that outlines provisions governing the Medicare and Medicaid EHR incentive programs, including a proposed definition for the central concept of "meaningful use" of EHR technology. In order for professionals and hospitals to be eligible to receive payments under the incentive programs, provided through the Recovery Act, they must be able to demonstrate meaningful use of a certified EHR system. The proposed standards and certification criteria in the IFR are fundamentally linked to and specifically designed to support the 2011 meaningful use criteria.
Great care was taken in the development of these criteria, with input from the public and federal advisory committees every step of the way. The resulting standards and certification criteria in the IFR are organized into four categories as recommended by the HIT Policy Committee and HIT Standards Committee:
· Content Exchange Standards (i.e., standards used to share clinical information such as clinical summaries, prescriptions, and structured electronic documents);
· Vocabulary Standards (i.e., standard nomenclature used to describe clinical problems and procedures, medications, and allergies);
· Transport Standards (i.e., standards used to establish the communication protocol between systems); and
· Privacy and Security Standards (e.g., authentication, access control, transmission security/encryption) which relate to and span across all of the other types of standards.
While well-defined data and technical standards are the foundation for interoperability between systems - allowing for reliable, consistent, secure, and accurate information exchange - we recognize that a high-level of nationwide interoperability will take time and will occur at varying rates. Therefore, our approach to the adoption of standards and certification criteria is pragmatic, yet forward looking. The criteria are designed to be supportive of the staged meaningful use requirements, but at the same time lay the foundation for future growth in information exchange and technological innovation.
An incremental approach to standards adoption requires harmonization with current and future standards to come. We will continue to be guided by recommendations from our federal advisory committees, public comment, industry readiness, and future meaningful use goals and objectives established for the Medicare and Medicaid EHR incentive programs. We anticipate this ongoing evolution in standards and certification criteria development as meaningful use requirements become more demanding over time and as industry continues to spur adoption through its innovative offerings.
Now, we ask for your continued input to inform the final regulations due in 2010.
Additional information on both of these regulations and how you can contribute to the open public comment periods can be found through the HHShttp://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2009pres/12/20091230a.html"> news release issued 12/30/09 and at thehttp://HealthIT.HHS.Gov"> http://HealthIT.HHS.Gov website.
At ONC, we look forward to your continued and active participation in HITECH programming and ongoing rulemaking processes in the new year.
Sincerely,
David Blumenthal, M.D., M.P.P.
National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
___________________________________________________
# # # # #
December 24, 2009
A Message from Dr. David Blumenthal, National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
As health care providers and hospitals across the nation incorporate electronic health records into routine patient care, the demand for highly skilled health IT professionals will rapidly grow. We will need a workforce that not only understands the technology and how it functions, but also its implications for patient care and workflow in clinical settings. When my practice implemented electronic records a decade ago, we were fortunate to have our hospital's highly skilled IT support staff working shoulder-to-shoulder with us. These staff got us over the considerable hurdle of learning to use EHRs. Unfortunately, not every hospital or practice has the benefit of this kind of help, and the necessary personnel are in short supply. Various studies have shown that we need at least 50,000 additional qualified health IT workers to assist hospitals and physicians as they move to adopt and meaningfully use electronic health records. Clearly, we must "grow" a corps of talented individuals with different backgrounds to fill a wide range of important roles, to support rising demand sparked by the Medicare and Medicaid incentives authorized by HITECH.
Last month I announced the availability ofhttp://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2009pres/11/20091124a.html"> $80 million to fund community college training programs and curriculum development to help strengthen the health IT workforce. These grants were the first in a series of programs, authorized by the HITECH Act, to address the need for the skilled workforce to help providers put in place and maintain secure, interoperable EHR systems.
The first, thehttp://healthit.hhs.gov/CommunityCollege"> Community College Consortia Program, totaling $70 million, will help create programs of study in health IT that trainees with some background in health care or IT will be able to complete in six months or less. Graduates will be equipped to work at the frontlines of adoption and meaningful use, helping doctors, nurses, and hospitals set up and use health IT systems in their practices and workplaces.
The second, thehttp://healthit.hhs.gov/CurriculumDevelopment"> Curriculum Development Centers Program, totaling $10 million, will fund the development of educational materials to support the community college training programs. The availability of these resources will allow these programs to ramp up quickly so graduates can begin meeting workforce demands.
Today's announcement of two new workforce development grant programs includes an additionalhttp://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2009pres/12/20091223a.html"> $38 million to establish a competency testing program and university-based training programs.
Thehttp://healthit.hhs.gov/competencyexamination"> Competency Examination Program will provide $6 million to an institution of higher education to create an objective mechanism to assess basic competency for individuals completing programs like those developed through the Community College Consortia Program.
Thehttp://healthit.hhs.gov/universitytraining"> University-Based Training Program is expected to generate graduates in vital highly specialized health IT roles over the course of three years. The program will provide $32 million to support academic program development that will lead to a university-issued certificate of advanced training (e.g., post-baccalaureate or graduate certificate) or a master's degree.
As these workforce programs are rolled out, you can find grants information and corresponding application deadlines athttp://healthit.hhs.gov/HITECHgrants"> http://HealthIT.HHS.Gov/HITECHgrants.
Modernizing our health care system requires the mobilization of an educated and talented workforce. By supporting such training we will accelerate the meaningful use of health IT and create tens of thousands of secure jobs when and where they are desperately needed.
Last month I announced the availability ofhttp://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2009pres/11/20091124a.html"> $80 million to fund community college training programs and curriculum development to help strengthen the health IT workforce. These grants were the first in a series of programs, authorized by the HITECH Act, to address the need for the skilled workforce to help providers put in place and maintain secure, interoperable EHR systems.
The first, thehttp://healthit.hhs.gov/CommunityCollege"> Community College Consortia Program, totaling $70 million, will help create programs of study in health IT that trainees with some background in health care or IT will be able to complete in six months or less. Graduates will be equipped to work at the frontlines of adoption and meaningful use, helping doctors, nurses, and hospitals set up and use health IT systems in their practices and workplaces.
The second, thehttp://healthit.hhs.gov/CurriculumDevelopment"> Curriculum Development Centers Program, totaling $10 million, will fund the development of educational materials to support the community college training programs. The availability of these resources will allow these programs to ramp up quickly so graduates can begin meeting workforce demands.
Today's announcement of two new workforce development grant programs includes an additionalhttp://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2009pres/12/20091223a.html"> $38 million to establish a competency testing program and university-based training programs.
Thehttp://healthit.hhs.gov/competencyexamination"> Competency Examination Program will provide $6 million to an institution of higher education to create an objective mechanism to assess basic competency for individuals completing programs like those developed through the Community College Consortia Program.
Thehttp://healthit.hhs.gov/universitytraining"> University-Based Training Program is expected to generate graduates in vital highly specialized health IT roles over the course of three years. The program will provide $32 million to support academic program development that will lead to a university-issued certificate of advanced training (e.g., post-baccalaureate or graduate certificate) or a master's degree.
As these workforce programs are rolled out, you can find grants information and corresponding application deadlines athttp://healthit.hhs.gov/HITECHgrants"> http://HealthIT.HHS.Gov/HITECHgrants.
Modernizing our health care system requires the mobilization of an educated and talented workforce. By supporting such training we will accelerate the meaningful use of health IT and create tens of thousands of secure jobs when and where they are desperately needed.
Sincerely,
David Blumenthal, M.D., M.P.P.
National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) will be conducting Technical Assistance Calls for the following grant programs designed to support the training and development of the skilled workforce required to support broad adoption and use of health information technology (health IT):
· http://healthit.hhs.gov/portal/server.pt?open=512&objID=1428&parentname=CommunityPage&parentid=21&mode=2&in_hi_userid=11113&cached=true"> Information Technology Professionals in Health Care: Program of Assistance for University-Based Training
Objective: to rapidly increase the availability of highly qualified individuals to serve in specific health information technology professional roles requiring university-level training. This funding opportunity will provide, through competitively awarded training grants, approximately $32 million in funding support to 8-12 institutions of higher education (or consortia thereof) to develop academic programs that will lead to university-issued certificates of advanced studies, within or in complement to a bachelor's degree, or to a master's degree.
Technical Assistance Call: January 5, 2010 at 3 pm EST
Objective: to rapidly increase the availability of highly qualified individuals to serve in specific health information technology professional roles requiring university-level training. This funding opportunity will provide, through competitively awarded training grants, approximately $32 million in funding support to 8-12 institutions of higher education (or consortia thereof) to develop academic programs that will lead to university-issued certificates of advanced studies, within or in complement to a bachelor's degree, or to a master's degree.
Technical Assistance Call: January 5, 2010 at 3 pm EST
· http://healthit.hhs.gov/portal/server.pt?open=512&objID=1434&parentname=CommunityPage&parentid=22&mode=2&in_hi_userid=11113&cached=true"> Information Technology Professionals in Health Care: Program for Competency Examination for Individuals Completing Non-Degree Training
Objective: to support the development and initial administration of a set of health IT competency examinations. This funding opportunity will provide, through a competitively awarded cooperative agreement, approximately $6 million of funding support to an institution of higher education (or consortium thereof) to develop these examinations for individuals who have completed non-degree training for key health IT professional roles.
Technical Assistance Call: January 6, 2010 at 1 pm EST( PLEASE SEE ADDITIONAL DETAILS BELOW TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS CALL.)
Objective: to support the development and initial administration of a set of health IT competency examinations. This funding opportunity will provide, through a competitively awarded cooperative agreement, approximately $6 million of funding support to an institution of higher education (or consortium thereof) to develop these examinations for individuals who have completed non-degree training for key health IT professional roles.
Technical Assistance Call: January 6, 2010 at 1 pm EST( PLEASE SEE ADDITIONAL DETAILS BELOW TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS CALL.)
Applications for both programs are due on January 25, 2010 athttp://www.grants.gov"> http://www.grants.gov.
For information on additional HITECH funding opportunities, please visithttp://healthit.hhs.gov/hitechgrants"> http://healthit.hhs.gov/hitechgrants.
_______________________________________________________
A Competency Examination grant program was announced recently by Dr. David Blumenthal, National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. This funding opportunity will provide $6 million in grants to institutions of higher education (or consortia thereof) to support the development and initial administration of a set of health IT competency examinations.
Please note that a Technical Assistance call is scheduled for potential applicants on Wednesday, January 6, 2009, from 1:00 to 2:00 P.M. EST.
Interested parties are encouraged to join the call using the following information:
Please note that a Technical Assistance call is scheduled for potential applicants on Wednesday, January 6, 2009, from 1:00 to 2:00 P.M. EST.
Interested parties are encouraged to join the call using the following information:
· To participate:
o https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/dt/join?id=F56QDP&role=attend&pw=xk4%3ArZ4"> https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/dt/join?id=F56QDP&role=attend&pw=xk4%3ArZ4
o Audio
§ Dial in number: 1-888-324-4392 (toll-free)
§ Participant passcode: 9313506
First Time Users:
To save time before the meeting,http://links.govdelivery.com/track?type=click&enid=bWFpbGluZ2lkPTY2Mzc1NiZtZXNzYWdlaWQ9UFJELUJVTC02NjM3NTYmZGF0YWJhc2VpZD0xMDAxJnNlcmlhbD0xMjE1NjMwNDc4JmVtYWlsaWQ9bWljaGVsbGUubXVycmF5QGhocy5nb3YmdXNlcmlkPW1pY2hlbGxlLm11cnJheUBoaHMuZ292JmV4dHJhPSYmJg==&&&104&&&http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=90703"> check your system to make sure it is ready to use Microsoft Office Live Meeting.
There will be time reserved for a Question and Answer session; questions should be submitted by email to HITCompetencyExam@hhs.gov or via the Microsoft Office Live Meeting interface. A transcript of the call and the slide deck will be posted onhttp://healthit.hhs.gov/"> http://healthit.hhs.gov shortly after the call. For detailed information on the Competency Examination program, visithttp://healthit.hhs.gov/CompetencyExam"> http://healthit.hhs.gov/CompetencyExam orhttp://www.grants.gov/"> http://www.grants.gov.
Visithttp://healthit.hhs.gov/hitechgrants"> http://healthit.hhs.gov/hitechgrants for information on the various HITECH Funding Opportunity Announcements.
To save time before the meeting,http://links.govdelivery.com/track?type=click&enid=bWFpbGluZ2lkPTY2Mzc1NiZtZXNzYWdlaWQ9UFJELUJVTC02NjM3NTYmZGF0YWJhc2VpZD0xMDAxJnNlcmlhbD0xMjE1NjMwNDc4JmVtYWlsaWQ9bWljaGVsbGUubXVycmF5QGhocy5nb3YmdXNlcmlkPW1pY2hlbGxlLm11cnJheUBoaHMuZ292JmV4dHJhPSYmJg==&&&104&&&http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=90703"> check your system to make sure it is ready to use Microsoft Office Live Meeting.
There will be time reserved for a Question and Answer session; questions should be submitted by email to HITCompetencyExam@hhs.gov or via the Microsoft Office Live Meeting interface. A transcript of the call and the slide deck will be posted onhttp://healthit.hhs.gov/"> http://healthit.hhs.gov shortly after the call. For detailed information on the Competency Examination program, visithttp://healthit.hhs.gov/CompetencyExam"> http://healthit.hhs.gov/CompetencyExam orhttp://www.grants.gov/"> http://www.grants.gov.
Visithttp://healthit.hhs.gov/hitechgrants"> http://healthit.hhs.gov/hitechgrants for information on the various HITECH Funding Opportunity Announcements.
Thank you,
The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
--------------------------------------------
The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) encourages you to share this information as we work together to enhance the quality, safety and value of care and the health of all Americans through the use of electronic health records and health information technology.
______________________________________________________________________________
Flu Season is Here!
Annual outbreaks of the seasonal flu usually occur from late fall to early spring. Typically, 5 to 20 percent of Americans get the seasonal flu, resulting in approximately 36,000 flu-related deaths.[1]
If you have Medicare patients who haven't yet received their flu shot, you can help them reduce their risk of contracting the seasonal flu by recommending an annual seasonal influenza vaccination. Medicare provides coverage of the seasonal flu vaccine and its administration. And don't forget to immunize yourself and your staff. Protect yourself, your staff, your patients, and your family and friends.
Remember - Influenza vaccine plus its administration are covered Part B benefits. Note that influenza vaccine is NOT a Part D covered drug.
For information about Medicare's coverage of the seasonal influenza virus vaccine and its administration as well as related educational resources for health care professionals and their staff, please go to http://www.cms.hhs.gov/MLNProducts/Downloads/flu_products.pdf on the CMS website. You will find a variety of resources that explain Medicare coverage and claims submission policies related to the seasonal influenza vaccine.
For information on Medicare policies related to H1N1 influenza, please go to http://www.cms.hhs.gov/H1N1 on the CMS website.
--------------------------------------
[1] Flu.gov. 2009. About the Flu [online]. Washington DC: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2009 [cited 30 November 2009]. Available from the World Wide Web:
(http://www.flu.gov/individualfamily/about/index.htm )
(http://www.flu.gov/individualfamily/about/index.htm )
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note: If you have problems accessing any hyperlink in this message, please copy and paste the URL into your Internet browser.
If you would like to unsubscribe from a specific provider listserv, please go to (https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/show_list_archives) to unsubscribe or to leave the appropriate listserv. Please DO NOT respond to this email. This email is a service of CMS and routed through an electronic mail server to communicate Medicare policy and operational changes and/or updates. Responses to this email are not routed to CMS personnel. Inquiries may be sent by going to (http://www.cms.hhs.gov/ContactCMS). Thank you.
[1] Flu.gov. 2009. About the Flu [online]. Washington DC: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2009 [cited 30 November 2009]. Available from the World Wide Web:
(http://www.flu.gov/individualfamily/about/index.htm )
(http://www.flu.gov/individualfamily/about/index.htm )
Posts
