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A House subcommittee approved and sent on to the full Energy and Commerce Committee H.R. 6357, the "Protecting Records, Optimizing Treatment, and Easing Communication through Healthcare Technology Act of 2008," known as the PRO(TECH)T Act, which is intended to strengthen the quality of health care, reduce medical errors and costs by encouraging adoption of health information technology, and further protect the privacy and security of health information in the electronic age.
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Mandatory use of the National Provider Identifier (NPI), which had been delayed from 2007, took effect May 23. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services officials said there were no early reports of abnormalities or significant problems in implementing the change.
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Some 91% of health care IT decision makers and executives say that HIPAA regulations influence or strongly influence their IT purchasing decisions, according to a survey by electronic access management tool developer Imprivata.
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The Planetree model is almost 30 years old but its essence is timeless, says Janet Powell Morin, RN, chief culture officer and former vice president, patient care services at Mid-Columbia Medical Center (MCMC) in The Dalles, OR.
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In early July, The Joint Commission issued a Sentinel Event Alert on behavior among health care professionals and its effect on care.
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"It's a constant struggle." Reducing door to doc times in the emergency department, that is. And though Iowa has traditionally ranked among the top three states for low ED wait times in Press Ganey reports, it still faces the never-ending challenge all EDs face: managing overcrowding, wait times, and patient satisfaction.
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"Spoil 'em rotten, pay 'em lots of money, let 'em do what they want, and then cut their throats if they don't give you what you need."
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Reimbursement for care of illegal immigrants could take a big hit as of Sept. 30, 2008 not great news as talk of health care costs, caring for the uninsured, and concern about insurance coverage become more rampant. Lobbyists are taking the issue on now, as hospital administrators, associations, and congressional leaders hit Washington, DC.
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Work flow and business processes must drive change. Whether the process evaluation is driven internally or externally from consultants, it is the critical factor for long-term viability and success.
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Entering the ED, my main goal was the well-being of my son. However, working in the health care revenue cycle industry, I was curious to see how this particular ED, which is part of a major hospital system in a large metropolitan area, would handle processing my information and asking for payment.
