The Win-Win of Today ’s Telemedicine Technology for All Practices
The following is a guest blog post by Sean Brindley, Product Development Manager, Kareo Telemedicine
The healthcare profession has been talking about telemedicine and its potential benefits almost as long as there have been phones. Over the last five years, adoption of telemedicine programs has increased steadily, but for some practices, particularly smaller, independent offices, the questions loom larger. How disruptive will adopting telemedicine be to office workflow? Will telemedicine overburden office staff? What are the risks involved in trying it? How will they get reimbursed for the investment? And, most important, ...
Source: EMR and HIPAA - March 22, 2018 Category: Information Technology Authors: Guest Blogger Tags: Connected Health Digital Health Healthcare HealthCare IT Telemedicine Kareo Sean Brindley Telehealth Source Type: blogs
The patient-physician relationship is in critical condition
The state of medicine in America is a highly discussed topic today. The reports are rarely positive. Politicians battle for control over their vision for health care and predict doom and gloom if the other side “wins.” The cost of health care continues to rise for employers and employees. Physician burnout and dissatisfaction are on the rise. We hear from politicians, media outlets, and others on how to fix the health care crisis. The two groups we hear the least from however are patients and doctors.
In the next few paragraphs, I will outline why the patient-physician relationship is in critical condition and how resu...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - February 25, 2018 Category: General Medicine Authors: < a href="https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/post-author/ryan-enke" rel="tag" > Ryan Enke, MD < /a > Tags: Policy Public Health & Washington Watch Source Type: blogs
OIG Releases Review of QPP
The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a review of the Quality Payment Program (QPP), concluding CMS has made progress towards implementing the QPP, but challenges remain. CMS appears on track to deploy the IT systems needed for data submission but the OIG has identified two vulnerabilities that are critical for CMS to address in 2018 because of their potential impact on the program's success.
OIG Study
According to the OIG, it interviewed CMS staff and reviewed internal CMS documents as well as publicly available information. The OIG conducted qualitative analysis to identify key milestones (both those achie...
Source: Policy and Medicine - February 13, 2018 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
Study Highlights Physician QPP Preparedness
Fewer than one in four physicians feel they are prepared to meet requirements under the CMS’ Quality Payment Program (QPP), a new American Medical Association and KPMG survey shows. Out of 1,000 physicians involved in practicing decision-making related to the QPP, only 8% said they were “deeply knowledgeable” about MACRA and QPP. In contrast, almost 92% said they were “somewhat knowledgeable” or not knowledgeable. All of this spells danger for the new program as CMS struggles to inform physicians about the new requirements even as a performance year has almost already been completed.
Study Results
According to ...
Source: Policy and Medicine - January 18, 2018 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
Speaking Up: From Exercise to Habit
By: Katie Rong
K. Rong is a third-year medical student, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, New York.
After two years of learning basic sciences and rehearsing clinical scenarios behind classroom doors, I was excited to have proven myself worthy to be working alongside professionals; but I was also worried that I would be more of a hindrance than help on the team. It was this conscious awareness of my position on the totem pole of medical hierarchy mixed with my budding understanding of clinical medicine and team dynamics that ultimately made me a cautious, silent learner at the beginning of my third year of medical...
Source: Academic Medicine Blog - January 9, 2018 Category: Universities & Medical Training Authors: Guest Author Tags: Featured Guest Perspective clerkship ethics speaking up Source Type: blogs
CMS Releases Final Rule for Second Year of QPP
Last week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a final rule that makes changes in the second year of the Quality Payment Program (QPP) under the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA), including the Merit-based Incentive Program (MIPS) and Advanced Payment Models (APMs). The second year of the QPP continues to build on transitional year 1 policies, noting that a “second year to ramp-up the program will continue to help build upon the iterative learning and development of year 1 in preparation for a robust program in year 3.”
In addition to the final rule, CMS als...
Source: Policy and Medicine - November 6, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
CMS Releases Final Rule for Second Year of QPP - Includes PI-QI CME Improvement Activity
Last week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a final rule that makes changes in the second year of the Quality Payment Program (QPP) under the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA), including the Merit-based Incentive Program (MIPS) and Advanced Payment Models (APMs). The second year of the QPP continues to build on transitional year 1 policies, noting that a “second year to ramp-up the program will continue to help build upon the iterative learning and development of year 1 in preparation for a robust program in year 3.”
In addition to the final rule, CMS als...
Source: Policy and Medicine - November 6, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
CMS Should Play the Role of Virtual Group Matchmaker
By MANU UPPAL and DAVID INTROCASO
In the 2018 proposed Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act’s (MACRA’s) rule, published earlier this year, HHS has again proposed to exclude two-thirds of physicians, or 900,000, from participation in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS). MIPS was created under 2015 MACRA legislation to incent financially Medicare physicians and other Medicare Part B clinicians to improve care quality and reduce Medicare spending growth. HHS is choosing to exclude smaller-sized physician practices because, it is believed, MIPS reporting requirements place too high a burden...
Source: The Health Care Blog - October 3, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: John Irvine Tags: Uncategorized CMS MACRA MIPS Virtual Groups Source Type: blogs
Parsing Volume to Value, Proxy Measures, and the Streetlight Effect
Despite some concern that the migration from fee-for-service to value based payment (VBP) is being reversed, there remains strong momentum for VBP – both nationally – in the form of the bipartisan 21st Century Cures Act that was passed and signed into law last December, and many state and commercial initiatives, including the one I’m personally involved with, New York Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment Program (DSRIP). ?Defining value, of course, is not easy. ?I’ve often returned to Michael Porter’s short essay on this topic when I feel my definition meandering. Go read it now. ?Please.
...
Source: Docnotes - August 19, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jacobr Tags: Technology Value Source Type: blogs
Parsing Volume to Value, Proxy Measures, and the Streetlight Effect
Despite some concern that the migration from fee-for-service to value based payment (VBP) is being reversed, there remains strong momentum for VBP – both nationally – in the form of the bipartisan 21st Century Cures Act that was passed and signed into law last December, and many state and commercial initiatives, including the one I’m personally involved with, New York Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment Program (DSRIP). Defining value, of course, is not easy. I’ve often returned to Michael Porter’s short essay on this topic when I feel my definition meandering. Go read it now. Pleas...
Source: Docnotes - August 19, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jacobr Tags: Technology Value Source Type: blogs
Where Does Radiology Burnout Come From? And How Can We Stop it?
Working on the weekends has become the norm for many physicians, and burnout rates have skyrocketed across many specialties. For radiologists, increased expectations and reimbursement policies are just a few of the main stressors that contribute to burnout. A new articlepublished inCurrent Problems in Diagnostic Radiology analyzes the origins of burnout, and identifies ways to prevent it from taking hold. The article centers around two fictionalized burnout situations. The first involves a radiologist called “Steve,” who used to be excited about work, until he was asked to head up a committee that didn’t respect hi...
Source: radRounds - August 18, 2017 Category: Radiology Authors: Julie Morse Source Type: blogs
What Should We Conclude From ‘ Mixed ’ Results In Payment Reform Evaluations?
Now that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) repeal-and-replace process is coming to an end, perhaps it’s a good time to turn to an area of health policy where there is considerably more bipartisan consensus: payment reform. Even here, however, challenges remain. A recent spate of evaluations, reviews, and published perspectives have cast doubt on the promise and spending-reduction potential of care coordination initiatives, shared savings accountable care organizations (ACOs), patient-centered medical homes, and bundled payments in particular. As the Trump administration, members of Congress, states, and other health care sta...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - August 14, 2017 Category: Health Management Authors: Len Nichols, Alison E. Cuellar, Lorens Helmchen, Gilbert Gimm and Jay Want Tags: Costs and Spending Featured Payment Policy Accountable Care Organizations Patient-Centered Medical Home Payment Reform Source Type: blogs
Deep Dive Into Proposed MACRA Rule
As we recently reported, CMS published their proposed rule to update the MACRA Quality Payment Program (QPP). The QPP is a part of a fundamental shift from fee-for-service to a more value-based health care system. Below, we offer a more in-depth look at the proposed rule.
Some Major Points
MACRA eliminated the sustainable growth rate formula and replaced it with a 0.5% rate increase through 2019. Physicians are encouraged to pick one of two Quality Payment Programs: 1) the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) or 2) Alternative Payment Models (APMs). MIPS folds together CMS legal programs of Meaningful Use, ...
Source: Policy and Medicine - August 10, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
Would single payer work? The real devil is in the details.
When I began my career as a physician in the late 1990s, I was relatively apolitical. Since then, as our health care system has crumbled, and as its demise (and our repeated failure to fix things) has increasingly affected my patients and my practice, I have become very political. In 2008, I began giving lectures in the community in support of a single-payer health reform model. My political leanings tend to land me in a largely single-payer crowd, and single-payer’s simplicity and non-profit ethics appeal to me. But since opening a small practice in 2009, my experiences and observations on the front lines of health care...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - August 4, 2017 Category: General Medicine Authors: < a href="http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/post-author/matthew-hahn" rel="tag" > Matthew Hahn, MD < /a > Tags: Policy Health reform Source Type: blogs
Reflections on the US HIT Policy Trajectory
I ’m in China this week, meeting with government, academia, and industry leaders in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Beijing, Shanghai, and Suzhou. The twelve hour time difference means that I can work a day in China, followed by a day in Boston. For the next 7 days, I ’ll truly be living on both sides of the planet.I recently delivered this policy update about the key developments in healthcare IT policy and sentiment over the past 90 days.I ’ve not written a specific summary of the recently released Quality Patient Program proposed rule which provides the detailed regulatory guidance for impleme...
Source: Life as a Healthcare CIO - July 7, 2017 Category: Information Technology Source Type: blogs
