Practice Technology

Five primary care facilities will test a new initiative that will allow patients to not only view, but add to their physicians’ visit notes in their electronic health records (EHR) systems

Five primary care facilities will test a new initiative that will allow patients to view and add to their physicians’ visit notes in their electronic health records (EHR) systems.

The November round of ICD-10 testing conducted by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has been deemed a success through a poll conducted by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC).

As of November 1, 2014, only 2% of eligible professionals had attested to Meaningful Use 2. This is not good news for thethousands of independent physician practices that rely on Medicare payments: the Center for Medicare Services is slated to handout 1% penalties this year for MU2 slackers

Here are seven strategies your practice can use to make sure you meet all the requirements of the MU program should the auditors come calling, and ensure you can keep the incentive money you earned.

Many physicians feel they're between a rock and a hard place. If they're participating in the Medicare side of the Meaningful Use program, have attested before, and don't attest to MU2 this year, they'll not only lose financial incentives but will be subject to penalties in 2017.

A reader shares a letter written to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services about the hardships electronic health records impose on small medical practices.

The new year brings changes to many evaluation and management codes physicians use, including chronic care management and advanced planning

Why upgrading the workflows of your front desk, clinical practice and administrative functions are necessary to improve efficiency and gain time

Efforts are underway to find technology solutions to the efficiency problems physicians experience with prior authorizations

Congress urges the ONC to certify only products that “clearly meet current meaningful use program standards and that do not block health information exchange.”

Beginning January 1, 2015, medical practices can, for the first time, bill Medicare for the non face-to-face time spent managing care for patients with multiple chronic diseases. But doing so may prove challenging for many practices, at least at first.

Starting in January, nearly 257,000 eligible professionals will face a 1% cut to their Medicare reimbursements for not meeting meaningful use standards, according to CMS.

Fifty-one percent of physicians cite financial incentives or penalties as a possible driver for them to make adopt EHRs.

With the addition of EHRs and patient portals, many practices today are better positioned to incorporate modern processes and procedures to manage their accounts receivables more effectively, particularly by improving collections from patients.

AHIMA-sponsored Twitter rally reaps more than 5,000 tweets to stop another ICD-10 delay

Soon patients will be able to interact with physicians the same way they buy clothes or music-online.

The AMA, along with many regional medical societies, is urging Congress to include another ICD-10 implementation delay to a stalled appropriations bill during the current lame duck session.

How physicians can manage growing technology obligations in the practice.

Telehealth can't replace personal encounters with patients, a physician writes

A reader says that electronic health records are costly and harmful to practice productivity.

As the evolution of health information technology forges for-ward, electronic health record (EHR) systems will continueto transform the practice of medicine.

Though the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is driving interest in telemedicine, providers are still having difficulty getting paid for using the technology, according to a survey.

Study says many low-cost or free options are available to help practices prepare

The majority of physicians could be facing penalties for not meeting meaningful use 2 requirements, and AMA says penalties should be removed.

The health IT leaders point to multiple leadership changes within the ONC that add to possible instability in the agency.