(Editor's Note: This guest blog was written by Chris Giancola, principal at CSC Healthcare Group.)In November, the Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General released an early assessment of the oversight of the national electronic health records adoption incentive program, more formally known as the meaningful use of certified ...

At the ICD-9-CM Coordination & Maintenance Committee Meeting  on Sept. 15, 2010, it was announced the committee had finalized the decision to implement a partial freeze for both ICD-9-CM codes and ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS codes prior to implementation of ICD-10 on Oct. 1, 2013. There was considerable support for this partial freeze. The ...

Kaiser Permanente has donated its Convergent Medical Terminology (CMT) to the International Healthcare Terminology Standards Development Organisation (IHTSDO) for U.S. distribution through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) so that all health care providers-large and small-can benefit from the translation-enabling ...

David Blumenthal, MD, national coordinator for health information technology, announced selection of the final Regional Extension Centers (RECs), completing a national system of 62 organizations that will help physicians, clinics and hospitals move from paper-based medical records to electronic health records (EHR). Two new awardees were named to ...

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) named InfoGard Laboratories Inc., San Luis Obispo, CA, as an ONC-Authorized Testing and Certification Body (ONC-ATCB). The addition of InfoGard Laboratories as an ONC-ATCB provides more options for EHR vendors to have their products tested and certified for compliance ...

The Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT), Chicago, and the Drummond Group Inc. (DGI), Austin, TX, were named yesterday by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) as the first technology review bodies that have been authorized to test and certify electronic health record (EHR) ...

According to AHA News Now, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) approved the first ''medical necessity review'' audits for Medicare's permanent recovery audit contractor (RAC) program last week. The newly approved audits include 18 types of inpatient hospital claims and one type of durable medical equipment claim, ...

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released MLN Matters Special Edition Article #SE1019 to provide updated information about the implementation of the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Edition, Clinical Modification and Procedure Coding System (ICD-10-CM/ICD-10-PCS) code. The first ICD-10-related ...

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed the fiscal year (FY) 2011 policies and payment rates for inpatient services furnished to people with Medicare by both acute care hospitals and long-term care hospitals.  The proposals are intended to ensure that Medicare pays appropriately for high quality, efficient and safe ...

After scores of debate, health care reform has finally passed. President Obama is expected to sign the bill into law today, launching a landmark overhaul of the health care system. Great-what's it mean for you? I had the same question, so I trolled around some articles and analyses on the lookout for measures that could affect the HIM ...