About Mike Squires

Mike Squires is a marketing and sales executive with 12 years focused on e-Healthcare initiatives that helped physicians change the way they work for better patient care. Experienced in introducing new online products to physicians, healthcare professionals, and the pharmaceutical and medical device industries with innovative sales and marketing strategies at start-up and traditional healthcare publishers. Helped position Medscape as the market leader to the industry and accelerate e-product offerings of Elsevier’s International Medical News Group and F-D-C Reports. Directed marketing, sales, client relations, sales support, and implementation of medical education and promotion programs. Entrepreneurial and enthusiastic; excellent mentor and motivator.

Curriculum Development Centers Program Awards $10MM to Five Universities

Curriculum Development Centers Program Awards $10MM to Five Universities
Excerpted from ONC site on April 2, 2010.
“The purpose of the Curriculum Development Centers Program, one component of the Workforce Program, is to provide funding to institutions of higher education (or consortia thereof) to support health information technology curriculum development. The materials developed under this program will be used by the member colleges of the regional Community College Consortia as well as be available to institutions of higher education across the country.

“In April 2010, ONC awarded $10 million in grants to five domestic institutions of higher education to develop curriculum and instructional materials to enhance workforce training programs primarily at the community college level.   One of the awardees under this program, Oregon Health & Science University, will receive additional funding to serve as the National Training and Dissemination Center (NTDC) that will host an in-person training event for community college faculty, establish a secure electronic site from which all materials may be downloaded, collect feedback from instructors and students, and coordinate subsequent revisions of the curriculum materials.Curriculum Development Centers Program Awardees:

  • Oregon Health & Science University:      $2,720,000
                                                  (includes $900,000 for NTDC)  
  • University of Alabama at Birmingham      $1,820,000  
  • Johns Hopkins University      $1,820,000     
  • Columbia University      $1,820,000                   
  • Duke University      $1,820,000 ”

Learn more about the Curriculum Development Centers Program:

Community College Consortium Awarded: Educate Health IT Professionals

Community College Consortium Awarded:
$36 Million to Educate Health IT Professionals

Awards for Community College Consortia were announced by ONC on its Web site on April 2, 2010. The grant program will provide financial “assistance to institutions of higher education, or consortia thereof, to establish or expand health information technology (health IT) education programs.” 

Excerpted from ONC Web site on April 2, 2010: “The duration of the grant award is for a maximum of two years. Total first-year funding allocation by region and lead awardees are provided below.”Excerpted from ONC site April 2, 2010: 

Region: Lead Awardee of Consortium, Year 1 Funding Allocation
A:
Bellevue College,  $ 3,364,798
B: Los Rios Community College District,  $ 5,435,587  
C. Cuyahoga Community College District,   $ 7,531,403  
D. Pitt Community College,  $10,901,009
E. Tidewater Community College,   $8,492,793
 “The purpose of the Community College Consortia is to provide assistance to institutions of higher education, or consortia thereof, to establish or expand health information technology (health IT) education programs. Academic programs may be offered through traditional on-campus instruction or distance learning modalities, or combinations thereof.

Community College Regions

Community College Regions

Overview:
Community College Consortia to Educate Health Information Technology Professionals in Health Care Program

“Training is designed to be completed within six months or less.  The programs will be flexibly implemented to provide each trainee with skills and competencies that he/she does not already possess.  Training at all Consortium member colleges is expected to begin by September 30, 2010.  The anticipated training capacity of the Consortia as a whole is expected to be least 10,500 students annually.
 
“Roles supported by this program include: 
  • Practice workflow and information management redesign specialist
  • Clinician/practitioner consultant
  • Implementation support specialist
  • Implementation manager
  • Technical/software support staff
  • Trainer

“In April 2010, ONC awarded an estimated $36 million in cooperative agreements to five regional recipients to establish a multi-institutional consortium within each designated region.  The five regional consortia will include 70 community colleges in total. Each college will create non-degree training programs that can be completed in six months or less by individuals with appropriate prior education and/or experience.  First year grant awards are estimated at $36 million.  An additional $34 million is available for year two funding of these programs.” 

Learn more about the Community College Consortia to Educate Health IT Professionals in Health Care Program: 

Blumenthal Letter #11: Research and Innovation that Translates to Practice–SHARP Grants

Blumenthal Letter #11: Research and Innovation that Translates to Practice
$60 Million in SHARP Grants Awarded to 4 “Renowned Institutions”
(Additional post from ONC Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Charles Friedman excerpted from ONC Blog below.)

Dr. David Blumenthal

 A Message from Dr. David Blumenthal, National Coordinator for Health Information
Emailed on April 2, 2010 
Our quest to improve the health of Americans and the performance of our health care system depends critically on the use of electronic health records (EHRs) and the electronic exchange of health information. The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) has created a solid foundation of programs and initiatives to support health care practitioners and hospitals in implementing meaningful use of certified EHR technology, but we are admittedly at the beginning of our journey. ONC is keenly aware that technology needs to continuously advance, bringing new solutions that will make it even more beneficial. While I’m proud of what ONC has achieved so far, I’m humbled by the size of the task still in front of us. The HITECH Act — in its very design — clearly recognized a need for progressive and innovative thinking to overcome barriers and ensure the long-term viability of our health care system.   

To this end, today ONC launched a major initiative aimed at promoting research and innovation. Four  renowned institutions — Mayo Clinic of Medicine, Harvard University, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston,  and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign — were awarded research grants totaling $60 million through the Strategic Health IT Advanced Research Projects (SHARP) program. 

Each institution’s research projects will identify short-term and long-term solutions to address key challenges, including ensuring the security of health IT (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), enabling patient-centered cognitive support for clinicians (The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston), making progress toward new health care application and network-platform architectures (Harvard University), and promoting the secondary use of EHR data while maintaining privacy and security (Mayo Clinic of Medicine). 

These projects will be conducted by multidisciplinary teams led by recognized public and private sector leaders in health, including  researchers, the technology industry, and health care providers. The results of these diverse teams’ work will be translated into practice to produce innovative health IT solutions that can be deployed nationwide.  This is not ivory tower research; its goal is to quickly infuse the dynamic health IT sector with new thinking, ideas, and solutions.The SHARP grants announced today represent an important investment in the long-term future of health care for our nation. I am excited by the promise of these projects to fundamentally change the trajectory of health IT in support of better health and care.
Sincerely,
David Blumenthal, M.D., M.P.P.
National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
          #          #         # 

Health IT Buzz Blog Post from Dr. Charles Friedman, Chief Scientific Officer, ONC
 SHARP: Confronting IT Challenges Head-on and Investing in the Future of Health Care
Friday, April 2nd, 2010 | Posted by: Dr. Charles Friedman | Category: HITECH Programs
Excerpted from ONC Web site on April 2, 2010.
Getting health IT “right” is difficult. Thousands of brilliant, creative and industrious people around the world have been working for several decades to realize the vision of making the technology a companion to care providers and patients, helping them make better decisions in support of better health. A scientific field of biomedical and health informatics has evolved around these efforts. Although great progress has been made, great challenges remain. While the health IT of today is largely equal to the task of supporting meaningful use as envisioned for 2011, current technology will be challenged by the more ambitious meaningful use visions of 2013, 2015, and beyond. Ongoing research and innovation will address these challenges 

To that end, we announced in December the Strategic Health IT Advanced Research Projects (SHARP) program, as part of our HITECH initiatives. We identified four areas where breakthroughs are required: health IT security, patient-centered cognitive support of clinicians, innovative application and network-platform architectures, and secondary use of EHR data that maintains privacy and security. We invited the public and private sectors to propose collaborative research programs with the goal of developing “breakthrough” innovations. We further challenged applicants to bring the best minds in the country to bear on these key problems.The response to our call was extraordinary in quality and quantity. The resulting competition was very keen. Today, after careful objective review, we awarded these very significant grants to four leading research institutions that submitted the most outstanding applications: Mayo Clinic of Medicine (for secondary use), Harvard University (for platform architectures), the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (for cognitive support), and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (for security). All four projects will develop innovative solutions that will find their way into working systems in two years, while also exploring more fundamental problems that require longer term study.   

As an informatics researcher and, formerly, a software developer, I am fully aware of how much we are expecting of these four projects. At the same time, I am fully confident that all four awardees are equal to our ambitions for SHARP, and that over the coming years, we will see from these centers breakthrough innovation and published research that will stimulate equally creative work by others.

Health IT Listening Session Apr 6 Agenda Set: Strategic Framework

Listening Agenda set for Health IT Strategic Framework Session
HIT Policy Committee Strategic Plan Workgroup
Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Per Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) for Health IT, “The objective of the listening session is to obtain feedback from the healthcare community regarding the Health IT Strategic Framework which will become foundation for the updates to the Federal Health IT Strategic Plan. The Health IT Strategic Plan will focus on 2011 through 2015 time period as well as lay the ground work for the period beyond 2015 to create a learning health system through the effective use of HIT.”

Presentation [PPT - 1.60 MB]

AGENDA (pdf version)
12:00 Welcome
     –Jodi Daniel, JD, MPH, Co-Chair, Strategic Plan Workgroup
12:10 Overview of the Health IT Strategic Framework Paper: Development & Vision
     –Paul Tang, MD, Vice Chair, HIT Policy Committee, Chair, Strategic Plan Workgroup
12:25 Learning Health System
     –Presenter / Moderator: Patricia Brennan – 10 min
     –Public Comments – 25 min
1:00 Meaningful Use of Health Information Technology
     –Presenter / Moderator : Paul Tang – 10 min
     –Public Comments – 25 min
1:35 Policy and Technical Infrastructure
     –Presenter / Moderator: Paul Egerman – 10 min
     –Public Comments – 25 min
2:10 Privacy and Security
     –Presenter / Moderator: Deven McGraw – 10 min
     –Public Comments – 25 min
2:45 Open Discussion, Closing Remarks & Next Steps
     –Paul Tang

Registration required:
Visit http://events.signup4.com/hitstrategic to register to attend the session.  Meeting materials will be posted at http://healthit.hhs.gov/StrategicPlanWG as they become available.

For more details about strategic framework, please see earlier post on e-Heathcare Marketing.

NHIN Info Revamped on ONC site: Nationwide Health Information Network

Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN): Key Info and Site Map
With revamped organization of NHIN information on Office of National Coordinator (ONC) for Health IT Web site, this post includes excerpts from NHIN Overview page and Limited Production Exchange page (accessed April 1, 2010) as well as a site map to key NHIN and NHIN Direct material. The NHIN Limited Production Exchange is being overseen by two committees–Coordinating Committee and Technical Committee–which were granted authority under DURSA (Data Use and Reciprocal Support Agreement) .

Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN): Overview
“The Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN) is a set of standards, services and policies that enable secure health information exchange over the Internet. The NHIN will provide a foundation for the exchange of health IT across diverse entities, within communities and across the country, helping to achieve the goals of the HITECH Act. This critical part of the national health IT agenda will enable health information to follow the consumer, be available for clinical decision making, and support appropriate use of healthcare information beyond direct patient care so as to improve population health.

“The NHIN Work Group, part of the Health IT Policy Committee, is currently developing recommendations for extending the secure exchange of health information using NHIN standards, services and policies to the broadest audience possible. Activities of the NHIN Work Group and Health IT Policy Committee can be found at http://healthit.hhs.gov/policycommittee.

“A group of federal agencies, local, regional and state-level Health Information Exchange Organizations (HIOs) and integrated delivery networks, formerly known as the NHIN Cooperative, has been helping to develop the NHIN standards, services and policies. Today, these organizations are demonstrating live health information exchange through the NHIN Limited Production Exchange. By the end of 2010, it is expected that approximately a dozen entities will be securely sharing live health information as part of this Exchange. For more information about the NHIN Limited Production Exchange, please visit NHIN Limited Production Exchange.

“Based on initial recommendations from the NHIN Work Group, a new initiative, the NHIN Direct Project, is being launched to explore the NHIN standards and services required to enable secure health information exchange at a more local and less complex level, such as a primary care provider sending a referral or care summary to a local specialist electronically. For more information about the NHIN Direct Project, please visit http://nhindirect.org/.

“Moving forward, the NHIN will continue evolving to meet emerging needs for exchanging electronic health information securely over the Internet. This evolution will be driven by emerging technology, users, uses, and policies.

“The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) believes that with broad implementation, the secure exchange of health information using NHIN standards, services and policies will help improve the quality and efficiency of healthcare for all Americans.”

NHIN Limited Production Exchange
“Today, the Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN) is operating as the NHIN Limited Production Exchange. This Exchange connects a diverse set of federal agencies and private organizations that need to securely exchange electronic health information. These entities currently include the Social Security Administration, MedVirginia, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Defense, and Kaiser Permanente. 

“Entities participating in the Limited Production Exchange have:

  • Completed an application for participation (which are available through the sponsoring Federal agency)
  • Executed a trust agreement called the Data Use and Reciprocal Support Agreement (DURSA)
  • Completed required testing / validation procedures
  • Been accepted by a Coordinating Committee – which supports operation of the NHIN Limited Production Exchange

“Today, non-federal agencies can only participate in the Exchange through a federally-sponsored contract that pertains to NHIN implementation. NHIN-related contracts currently include:

  • SSA – just awarded contracts to 15 organizations 
  • Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record (VLER) – VA, DoD, KP, others TBD
  • Beacon Communities
  • State HIE Cooperative Agreements
  • CDC
  • Other federal programs that focus on the NHIN exchange

“Federal agencies are assessing and prioritizing their rollout strategy and will prioritize their expansion over the next 12 to 18 months.

“Entities that are interested in exchanging data with the NHIN Limited Production Exchange should:

  1. Determine whether the existing functionality meets its needs:
    • Does the organization have a need to exchange summary patient records for care coordination?
    • Does the organization need to submit state public health reporting information to CDC? 
    • Does the organization wish to provide summary records to SSA for disability determination purposes?
       
  2. If the organization requires any of the functionality listed above, does it have a contract with one of the sponsoring federal agencies noted above?
    • If so – the organization should coordinate through the sponsoring agency.
    • If not, the organization should pursue one of those contracts or partner with one of the existing recipients (such as SSA awardees, state HIEs, Beacon Communities, etc.)

“The NHIN specifications, testing resources, legal agreements and accountability measures are available to the public to stimulate implementation of secure electronic health information exchange.  These helpful resources are available below as well as on the Resources page in the left column, and entities are encouraged to review them if they plan to engage in the NHIN limited production exchange in the future. 

“The work products of the NHIN Coordinating Committee, including policies and procedures and meeting notes, are available by clicking HERE.”

“It is important to note that the NHIN will continue to evolve to support additional information exchange models – ranging from less complex to more robust. For more information about the evolving vision of the NHIN please visit” the Ongoing Development Activities Page.

“For more information about the NHIN, please revisit” the NHIN site regularly for updates.

NHIN Limited Production Exchange – Committee Resources
“NHIN Limited Production Exchange participants elected to use two committees – a Coordinating Committee and a Technical Committee – to help oversee the production exchange. These two committees were granted authority under the DURSA to serve these functions for the exchange. Parties that sign the DURSA agree to Committee process.

“The Technical Committee is responsible for determining priorities for the NHIN production exchange and creating and adopting specifications and test approaches for that exchange. The Technical Committee works closely with the Coordinating Committee to assess the impact that changes to the specifications and test approaches may have on NHIN exchange participants.

“The Coordinating Committee is responsible for accomplishing the necessary planning, consensus building, and consistent approaches to developing, implementing and operating the NHIN exchange, including playing a key role in NHIN exchange breach notification; dispute resolution; exchange membership, suspension and termination; NHIN exchange operating policies and procedures. In addition, the Coordinating Committee informs the Technical Committee when proposed changes for interface specifications have a material impact on exchange participants.The Coordinating Committee uses a set of operating procedures to guide its activities and will conduct self assessments to refine the committee process over time. These documents, along with minutes of Coordinating Committee meetings, are available” on the NHIN Limited Production–Exchange Committee Resources page.

NHIN Site Map
NHIN: Overview
NHIN Limited Production Exchange
NHIN Limited Production Exchange – Committee Resources
NHIN Ongoing Development Activities
NHIN Inventory of Tools
NHIN Resources  Includes NHIN Limited Prodcution Exchange Committee Resources, Coordinating Committee Policies & Procedures, Meeting Notes, 2010 NHIN Final Production Specs, Materials related to Data Use and Reciprocal Support Agreement (DURSA), NHIN Validation Plan, Trial Implementations, past NHIN Forums.
NHIN History and Background with links to Phase 1: Prototype Architectures and Phase 2: Trial Implementations

NHIN Direct Project:    http://nhindirect.org
NHIN Direct Blog
NHIN Direct FAQs
For additional information on NHIN Direct, see a previous post on e-Healthcare Marketing.

CMS Conference Presentations on Multi-State Health IT Collaborative Posted

CMS Second Annual Multi-State Health IT Collaborative for E-Health Conference
February 8–9, 2010:  Agenda and Presentations Posted
Washington, DC
This Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) conference focused on federal-state collaboration on the HITECH rollout of electronic health records and health information exchange, and how Medicare and Medicaid Health IT programs and other ONC initiatives worked together.  News, agenda, and the 20 presentations are posted below.

According to HIMSS News of February 12, 2010, 35 states had summitted State Medicaid HIT Plans for to receive planning funds for the Medicaid portion of the EHR Incentive Program.  As HIMSS News explained “Plans are required to include the current HIT landscape in the state, the State’s Five-Year Vision for incorporating multiple resources (HIEs, Medicaid resources, local and state-wide resources, etc.), and the State’s vision for Oversight and Implementation.” As of March 24, 2010, 32 state (or territory) Medicaid programs had been awarded a total of $50 million for the 90/10 Medicaid Admin program. (See e-Healthcare Marketing post for table of states and amounts awarded.)

e-Healthcare Marketing has excerpted and posted the full agenda for the two-day conference and the 20 presentations, all of which appeared useful in more fully understanding the role of CMS and the states. 
“CMS Second Annual Conference Site”:  Materials
Program Agenda for both days in pdf format.

PROGRAM AGENDA–DAY ONE
Monday, February 8, 2010 (pdf  version for Day One)

Welcome Remarks
This welcome session will highlight the importance of States in E-Health and will preview many of the health information technology (HIT) discussions planned throughout the conference, including priorities and lessons learned about promoting Electronic Health Record (EHR)/Health Information Technology adoption and key implementation issues for the Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs.
–Teresa Niño, Director, Office of External Affairs, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
–Cynthia Mann, Director, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS

Concurrent Sessions I
Establishing Health Information Exchange Governance*
*(As a result of last-minute agenda changes, this session was combined with Health Information Technology and Exchange Planning.)
This session will provide guidance and tips on the different models of HIE governance that States could consider and the impacts/considerations for each.
Co-Moderators:
–Julie Alberino, Technical Director Region II, CMS
–Lee Stevens, Regional Manager, Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC)
Speaker:
–Anthony Rodgers, Principal, Health Management Associates

Health Information Technology and Exchange Planning
(As a result of last-minute agenda changes, this session was combined with Establishing Health Information Exchange Governance.)
This session will outline important steps and considerations when planning for HIT/E projects, including legal issues, stakeholder involvement, existing infrastructure, and how CMS 90/10 FFP can be applied to the different models.
Speakers:
–Kelly Cronin, Director, Office of Programs and Coordination, ONC
–Denise Bazemore, Technical Director for State Systems, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS
–Denise Webb, State Health IT Coordinator, Wisconsin Department of Health Services
–Jonah Frohlich, Deputy Secretary of Health Information Technology, California Health and Human Services Agency

Role of Managed Care in Health Information Technology and Exchange
This session will outline how Medicaid Managed Care Organizations can facilitate and support HIT/EHR promotion and the success of the Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs.
Moderator:
–Michelle Mills, Policy Analyst, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS
Speakers:
–Dr. Kenneth Yale, Executive Director, AmeriChoice
–Lawrence Clark, SMHP Director, Pennsylvania Medicaid

Health Information Exchange Financing
This session will focus on the parameters of the CMS 90/10 administrative matching funds for statewide HIEs, ONC HIE’s funding, and will also present sustainable HIE financing from other sources.
Speakers:
–Rick Friedman, Director, Division of State Systems, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS
–Mat Kendall, Acting Director of the Office of Provider Adoption Support, ONC
–Jack Shafer, West Virginia Primary Care Network

The CMS HITECH Proposed Rule
This session will offer the Federal perspective on the Medicaidrelated portions of the NPRM, CMS expectations, and what areas States need to focus on in the short term. Participants will be encouraged to ask questions of the CMS panel members, who will do their best to answer, with the caveat that the rule is proposed, not final.
Moderator/Speaker:
–Rick Friedman, Director, Division of State Systems, Centers for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS
Panel:
–Jessica Kahn, Technical Director for HIT, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS
–Donna Schmidt, Technical Director for Quality, Evaluation & Health Outcomes, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS
–Michelle Mills, Health Policy Analyst, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS
–Judith Haron, Attorney, Office of General Counsel, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

Office Hours: Talk With the Experts
These smaller, informal sessions are for you to ask the experts questions on HITECH implementation. These roundtable sessions are designed to be interactive. Please sign up in advance when you register onsite.
A. CMS 90/10 Financing for HITECH Implementation
Experts:
–Denise Bazemore, Technical Director, CMS
–Rick Friedman, Director, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS
Pose questions about possible uses of the CMS 90/10 Administrative funding. Note that CMS will discuss our guiding principles for use of this funding, but answers are not in lieu of an approved P-APD or IAPD.

B. Technical Assistance Resources for State Agencies
Experts:
–Sherry Armstead, Technical Director, CMS
–Erin Grace, Senior Manager of HIT, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
–Mark Yanick, Public Health Analyst, Health Resources and Services Administration
Ask questions and receive detailed responses about the currently available and soon-to-be available federally funded technical assistance resources for State Agencies.

C. MMIS/MITA and HIT Integration
Experts:
–Dr. James Figge, Medical Director, New York State Department of Health
How do MITA and HITECH intersect? Ask a CMS and State representative how the MITA framework can be successfully applied to your State’s expanding HIT/E activities.

D. Approved CMS P-APDs & First Steps
Experts:
Lawrence Clark, SMHP Director, Pennsylvania Medicaid
Hear from other States that have approved HITECH P-APDs and ask about first steps, planning methodologies, how they hope to coordinate with their ONC HIE cooperative agreements, etc.

E. CMS Expectations for State Medicaid HIT Plans
Experts:
–Julie Alberino, Technical Director, CMS
–Jessica Kahn, Technical Director for HIT, CMS
–Michelle Mills, Health Policy Analyst, CMS
–Donna Schmidt, Technical Director for Quality, Evaluation & Health Outcomes, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS
Talk to your CMS colleagues about the expected contents of State Medicaid HIT Plans. Ask questions about revamping older plans, starting from scratch, and/or how the Medicaid plans intersect with the ONC HIE plans.

Promoting Electronic Health Records Adoption/ Communications/ Outreach
This session will focus on strategies to encourage EHR adoption, and communication and outreach about the EHR efforts and identify effective messaging and roles for States.
–Christina Nye, Division Director, Florida Agency for Health Care Administration
–David Collins, Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society
–Mat Kendall, ONC

DAY TWO AGENDA
February 9, 2010  (pdf Version)

The Word From ONC: Health Information Technology and Health Care Transformation
Moderator:
–Alan Weil, Executive Director, National Academy for State Health Policy
Speaker:
–Dr. David Blumenthal, National Coordinator for Health IT, ONC

Maximizing Federal Health Information Technology and Exchange Funding
This session will focus on available Federal resources for HIT/E to States and how to best leverage them to achieve broad HIT/EHR adoption and achieve the goals of the HITECH Act. Speakers will identify for States the funding available for the different components of HIT/E development and maintenance.
Moderator:
–Patricia MacTaggart, Lead Research Scientist, George Washington University
Speakers:
–Kelly Cronin, Director, Office of Programs and Coordination, ONC
–Rick Friedman, Director, Division of State Systems, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS
–Susan Lumsden, Director, Division of State and Community Assistance, Office of Health Information Technology, Health Resources and Services Administration

CONCURRENT SESSIONS II
Lessons Learned and Best Practices for Medicaid Health Information Technology Promotion
This session will highlight critical lessons learned and 20/20 hindsight from State Medicaid Agencies who have been working on HIT/EHR adoption projects.
Moderator:
–Jessica Kahn, Technical Director for HIT, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS
Speakers:
–Dr. James Figge, Medical Director, New York State Department of Health
–Kim Davis-Allen, Alabama Medicaid
–Anthony Rodgers, Principal, Health Management Associates

Provider Readiness—Large, Small, and Solo Practices
This session will focus on challenges to HIT/EHR adoption facing providers in various practice sizes and how to best tailor your State’s approach to each as you implement the EHR Incentive Program.
Moderator:
–Nikki Highsmith, Senior Vice President for Programs, Center for Health Care Strategies
Speakers:
–Dr. Jonathan White, Health IT Director, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
–Dr. Sarah Chouinard, Medical Director, Community Health Network of West Virginia
–Dr. Farzad Mostashari, Senior Advisor to the National Coordinator, ONC

CONCURRENT SESSIONS III
CMS Draft Guiding Principles for Use of the 90/10 Administration Funds
After approval of the HIT P-APD and the State Medicaid HIT Plan (SMHP), State Medicaid Agencies will focus next on the activities necessary for implementing their EHR Incentive Program. This session will highlight key issues concerning implementation and offer an opportunity for Q&As from the audience.
Speakers:
–Rick Friedman, Director, Division of State Systems, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS
–Jessica Kahn, Technical Director for HIT, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS
–Michelle Mills, Health Policy Analyst, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, CMS

Medicaid Management Information Systems (MMIS) and Health Information Technology Integration and Coordination
This session will provide insight into the role of States’ MMIS systems and MITA as well as the future of HIT/E efforts in light of States’ implementation of the Medicaid EHR Incentive Program.
Moderator:
–Denise Bazemore, Technical Director for State Systems, CMS
Speakers:
–Robert Guenther, Technical Director for MITA, CMS
–Dr. James Figge, Medical Director, New York State Department of Health
–Carol Robinson, HIT Coordinator, State of Oregon

 Harmonization of Privacy and Security for Health Information Exchange
This session will focus on how States could assess and address overlapping privacy and security issues related to HIE as they pertain to Federal and State laws, and beneficiary perceptions.
Moderator:
–Joy Pritts, J.D., Research Associate/Professor, Health Policy Institute, Georgetown University (since meeting moved to Chief Privacy Offficer, ONC)
Speaker:
–LaRah Payne, Senior Policy Analyst/Privacy Officer, District of Columbia Medicaid

Presentations in pdf format
The final conference presentations (20) are available for download and viewing in PDF format on the CMS Conference site. 
Links to the 20 presentations in PDF format are also available below. 

Health IT Policy Cmte Meets: Phone Only, April 5

Health IT Policy Cmte Meeting: Phone Only, April 5, 2010
Per ONC email on March 26, “There will be a short conference call of the HIT Policy Committee (HITPC) on Monday, April 5th, 10-11 a.m. ET.  HITPC will be discussing their comments on the Certification IFR. Members of the public may listen in via phone (there will be no Web conference). ”

Dial In
US Toll Free: 1-877-705-6006

For more information on the HIT Policy Committee, visit: http://healthit.hhs.gov/PolicyCommittee

CMS Awards Total of $50 Million to 32 State Medicaid EHR Programs

CMS Awards Total of $50 Million to 32 State Medicaid Programs
for Electronic Health Records Incentive Program
The six state Medicaid programs that received federal matching funds for electronic health record incentive program announced March 24, 2010 by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) were the latest in  the series of 32 states since November 2009 that were awarded a total of $50,162,000. That’s according to a search of CMS press releases on March 29, 2010. 

See the alphabetical list below with amounts awarded and dates of the press releases.

As an example, the press release for North Carolina, one of the states receiving matching funds on March 24, 2010 received $2.29 million and one of the higher amounts, said “The Recovery Act provides a 90 percent federal match for state planning activities to administer the incentive payments to Medicaid providers, to ensure their proper payments through audits and to participate in statewide efforts to promote interoperability and meaningful use of EHR technology statewide and, eventually, across the nation.”

According to a recent presentation by CMS,  the Statutory Conditions of Use of the 90/10 HITECH Admin Funds are three fold, and vary based on the specific plan proposed by the state and agreed to by CMS:
“1. Administration of incentives, including tracking of meaningful use by Medicaid EPs and eligible hospitals;
2. Oversight, including routine tracking of meaningful use attestations and reporting mechanisms; and
3. Pursuing initiatives to encourage the adoption of certified EHR technology for the promotion of health care quality and the exchange of health care information.”

According to the report by Bernie Monegain in Healthcare IT News on March 25, 2010, ”Colorado will use its federal matching funds for planning activities that include conducting a comprehensive analysis to determine the current status of healthcare information technology activities in the state.” In addition to Colorado and North Carolina, the other state Medicaid EHR awards announced on March 24, 2010 were Mississippi, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming.

The midpoint of the 32 awards was about $1.4 million, with New York’s Medicaid program (announced December 24, 2010) receiving the largest, $5.91 million.

CMS Matching Funds for EHRs

State        Amount            Date
Alabama $269,000 2/26/2010
Alaska $900,000 1/21/2010
Arizona $2,890,000 2/26/2010
Arkansas $815,000 2/26/2010
California $2,480,000 12/9/2009
Colorado $798,000 3/24/2010
Florida $1,690,000 2/26/2010
Georgia $3,170,000 12/9/2009
Idaho $142,000 12/9/2009
Illinois $2,180,000 2/26/2010
Iowa $1,160,000 11/23/2009
Kansas $1,700,000 2/26/2010
Kentucky $2,600,000 1/21/2010
Maine $1,400,000 2/26/2010
Michigan $1,520,000 2/26/2010
Mississippi $1,470,000 3/24/2010
Montana $239,000 12/9/2009
Nebraska $894,000 2/26/2010
Nevada $1,050,000 3/24/2010
New York $5,910,000 12/9/2009
North Carolina $2,290,000 3/24/2010
Oklahoma $587,000 2/26/2010
Pennsylvania $1,420,000 1/4/2010
South Carolina $1,480,000 1/21/2010
Tennessee $2,700,000 1/4/2010
Texas $3,860,000 12/9/2009
US Virgin Islands $232,000 12/9/2009
Utah $396,000 3/24/2010
Vermont $294,000 2/26/2010
Virginia $1,660,000 2/26/2010
Wisconsin $1,370,000 1/21/2010
Wyoming $596,000 3/24/2010
TOTAL  $50,162,000  

Source: CMS Site Press Releases

For additional information on CMS role in conjunction with ONC on Health IT Initiative, see e-Healthcare Marketing post on February 2010 conference.

Health Reform Bill References to Health Information Technology–Part II

Health Reform Bill References (After Page 1,050) to Health Information Technology–Part II
This Part II post covers references that appear after page 1,050 to health information technology and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT   in the“Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act” approved by the House of Representatives on March 21, 2010 and passed by the Senate in December 2009. Page numbers at the end of each reference are based on the Senate pdf: [PDF of Senate version which was approved by House]

For Part I of  “Health Reform Bill References to Health IT” on e-Healthcare Marketing, with references to Health IT in the first 1,050 pages, click here.   (Numbering continues from part I.)

23.  SEC. 3502. (Continued from Part  I of post on Health Reform Bill) ESTABLISHING COMMUNITY HEALTH TEAMS TO SUPPORT THE PATIENT-CENTERED MEDICAL HOME“(6) provide support necessary for local primary care providers to—…(J) establish a coordinated system of early identification and referral for children at risk for developmental or behavioral problems such as through the use of infolines, health information technology, or other means as determined by the Secretary;” p. 1051
24. ”(7) provide 24-hour care management and support during transitions in care settings including—…(9) demonstrate a capacity to implement and maintain health information technology that meets the requirements of certified EHR technology (as defined in section 3000 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300jj)) to facilitate coordination among members of the applicable care team and affiliated primary care practices;” p. 1054
25. “(b) PERSONALIZED PREVENTION PLAN SERVICES DEFINED…‘‘(F) To the extent practicable, the Secretary shall encourage the use of, integration with, and coordination of health information technology (including use of technology that is compatible with electronic medical records and personal health records) and may experiment with the use of personalized technology to aid in the development of self-management skills and management of and adherence to provider recommendations in order to improve the health status of beneficiaries.” p. 1158.
26.  ‘‘SEC. 3101. DATA COLLECTION, ANALYSIS, AND QUALITY…‘‘(3) DATA MANAGEMENT.—In collecting data described in paragraph (1), the Secretary, acting through the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology shall—‘‘(A) develop national standards for the management of data collected; and‘‘(B) develop interoperability and security systems for data management.” p. 1222
27.  “Subtitle B—Innovations in the Health Care Workforce SEC. 5101. NATIONAL HEALTH CARE WORKFORCE COMMISSION…(ii) An analysis of the nature, scopes of practice, and demands for health care workers in the enhanced information technology and management workplace.” p. 1255
28. “Subtitle D—Enhancing Health Care Workforce Education and Training…‘‘(3) PRIORITIES IN MAKING AWARDS.—In awarding grants or contracts under paragraph (1)the Secretary shall give priority to qualified applicants that—‘‘(H) provide training in enhanced communication with patients, evidence-based practice, chronic disease management, preventive care, health information technology, or other competencies as recommended by the Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry and the National Health Care Commission established in section 5101 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act;” p. 1321
29. SEC. 5405. PRIMARY CARE EXTENSION PROGRAM…(grants to) ‘‘(H) provide training in enhanced communication with patients, evidence-based practice,chronic disease management, preventive care, health information technology, or other competencies as recommended by the Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry and the National Health Care Workforce Commission established in section 5101 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act;” p.1412
30. Subtitle G—Improving Access to Health Care Services SEC. 5604. CO-LOCATING PRIMARY AND SPECIALTY CARE IN COMMUNITY-BASED MENTAL HEALTH SETTINGS…(1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible entity’ means a qualified community mental health program defined under section 1913(b)(1). ‘‘(2) SPECIAL POPULATIONS.—The term ‘special populations’ means adults with mental illnesses who have co-occurring primary care conditions and chronic diseases. ‘‘(b) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary, acting through the Administrator shall award grants and cooperative agreements to eligible entities to establish demonstration projects for the provision of coordinated and integrated services to special populations through the co-location of primary and specialty care services in community-based mental and behavioral health settings…‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For the benefit of special populations, an eligible entity shall use funds awarded under this section for—‘‘(C) information technology required to accommodate the clinical needs of primary and specialty care professionals; p. 1488
31. ”SEC. 6114. NATIONAL DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS ON CULTURE CHANGE AND USE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN NURSING HOMES.” Demonstration project “for the development of best practices in skilled nursing facilities and nursing facilities for the use of information technology to improve resident care.” p. 1597
32. ”Subtitle D—Patient-Centered Outcomes Research SEC. 6301. PATIENT-CENTERED OUTCOMES RESEARCH” Institute…”The Office of Communication and Knowledge Transfer (referred to in this section as the ‘Office’) at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (or any other relevant office designated by Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality), in consultation with the National Institutes of Health, shall broadly disseminate the research find2ings that are published by the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute established under section1181(b) of the Social Security Act (referred to in this section as the ‘Institute’) and other government-funded research relevant to comparative clinical effectiveness research….The Office shall also develop a publicly available resource database that collects and contains government-funded evidence and research from public, private, not-for profit, and academic sources.” ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—The Office shall provide for the dissemination of the Institute’s research findings and government-funded research relevant to comparative clinical effectiveness research to physicians, health care providers, patients, vendors of health information technology focused on clinical decision support, appropriate professional associations, and Federal and private health plans. Materials, forums, and media used to disseminate the findings, informational tools, and resource databases shall—23 ‘‘(A) include a description of considerations for specific subpopulations, the research methodology, and the limitations of the research, and the names of the entities, agencies, instrumentalities, and individuals who conducted any research which was published by the Institute; and ‘‘(B) not be construed as mandates, guidelines, or recommendations for payment, coverage, or treatment. ‘‘(b) INCORPORATION OF RESEARCH FINDINGS.—The Office, in consultation with relevant medical and clinical associations, shall assist users of health information technology focused on clinical decision support to promote the timely incorporation of research findings disseminated under subsection (a) into clinical practices and to promote the ease of use of such incorporation.” p.1649
33. ‘‘PART II—PROGRAMS TO PROMOTE ELDER JUSTICE SEC. 2041. ENHANCEMENT OF LONG-TERM CARE.‘‘(a) GRANTS AND INCENTIVES FOR LONG-TERM CARE STAFFING.—…‘‘(b) CERTIFIED EHR TECHNOLOGY GRANT PROGRAM.—‘‘(1) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary is authorized to make grants to long-term care facilities for the purpose of assisting such entities in offsetting the costs related to purchasing, leasing, developing, and implementing certified EHR technology (as defined in section 1848(o)(4)) designed to improve patient safety and reduce adverse events and health care complications resulting from medication errors. ‘‘(2) USE OF GRANT FUNDS.—Funds provided under grants under this subsection may be used for any of the following: ‘‘(A) Purchasing, leasing, and installing computer software and hardware, including handheld computer technologies.‘‘(B) Making improvements to existing computer software and hardware.‘‘(C) Making upgrades and other improvements to existing computer software and hardware to enable e-prescribing.‘‘(D) Providing education and training to eligible long-term care facility staff on the use of such technology to implement the electronic transmission of prescription and patient information.” p. 1791
34.  SEC. 10109. DEVELOPMENT OF STANDARDS FOR FINANCIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE TRANSACTIONS…‘‘(B) SOLICITATION OF INPUT.—For purposes of subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall seek input from— ‘‘(i) the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics, the Health Information Technology Policy Committee, and the Health Information Technology Standards Committee; p. 2121
35. SEC. 10305. DATA COLLECTION; PUBLIC REPORTING…(2) COLLECTION AND AGGREGATION OF DATA.— The Secretary shall collect and aggregate consistent data on quality and resource use measures from information systems used to support health care delivery, and may award grants or contracts for this purpose. The Secretary shall align such collection and aggregation efforts with the requirements and assistance regarding the expansion of health information technology systems, the interoperability of such technology systems, and related standards that are in effect on the date of enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. p. 2182
36. SEC. 10410. CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE FOR DEPRESSION.(a) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as ‘‘Establishing a Network of Health-Advancing National Centers of Excellence for Depression Act of 2009’’ or the‘‘ENHANCED Act of 2009’’…‘‘(2) IMPROVED TREATMENT STANDARDS, CLINICAL GUIDELINES, DIAGNOSTIC PROTOCOLS, AND CARE COORDINATION PRACTICE.—Each Center shall collaborate with other Centers in the network to—…‘‘(D) use electronic health records and telehealth technology to better coordinate and manage, and improve access to, care, as determined by the coordinating center.” p. 2311

[PDF of Senate version which was approved by House]

For Part I of  “Health Reform Bill References to Health IT” on e-Healthcare Marketing, with references to Health IT in the first 1,050 pages, click here. 

Please make comments, suggestions or corrections to this post via the Comments box or an email to the producer of e-Healthcare Marketing. Thank you.

NJ Awarded $11.4 Million Grant for Electronic Health Records

NJ Awarded $11.4 Million Grant for Electronic Health Records
March 25, 2010 Press Release from Poonam Alaigh, MD, MSHCPM, FACP, Acting Commissioner, NJ Dept of Health and Senior Services: 
 ”New Jersey will receive $11.4 million in federal funds over the next four years to fund electronic health records projects that will allow hospitals, doctors and health insurance companies to share electronic medical records in real time over secure networks.

(Update: Dr. Alaigh was sworn in as commissioner on March 26, 2010.)

“The state will work with the health care industry to create four regional Health Information Exchanges (HIEs) that will share information such as lab results and medication histories among health care providers around the state. HIEs hold the promise of improving health care quality and efficiency by eliminating duplicative testing, avoiding dangerous medication interactions and providing information about patient histories with other facilities that will help physicians improve care.

“The funding, awarded under the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, moves the state closer to the national goal of achieving interoperable electronic health records transfer capability by the year 2014.

“The Department of Health and Senior Services led a multi-departmental effort to apply for the grant and to jointly submit a state plan for Health Information Technology.

“Health and Senior Services Commissioner Dr. Poonam Alaigh and Banking and Insurance Commissioner Tom Considine explained that the goal of the initiative is to increase patient safety and reduce medical costs. The Department of Human Services, which runs the state’s Medicaid program, is also involved in the initiative.

“‘The real-time exchange of clinical data among health-care providers represents a central pillar of health-care reform,’ said Dr. Alaigh. ‘If we’re going to get serious about reducing costs, if we’re going to get serious about managing patients with chronic disease, and if we’re going to get serious about coordinating care, then accurate and robust data at the point of care is fundamental.’

“Commissioner Considine said, ‘These infrastructure projects are important building blocks in creating a network-wide electronic health records system,’ said Commissioner Considine. ‘These projects will help lead the way toward better and safer medical care for the people of New Jersey.’

“‘When we began this effort more than a decade ago, we knew it would be an ambitious undertaking,’ said Commissioner Considine. ‘An electronic health records system translates to important cost savings for hundreds of thousands of people.’

“When these projects are completed by March 2014, treatments including diagnostic tests such as legally required lead screening for children will be tracked, preventing unnecessary duplicate services. Another benefit of electronic health records is that any possible adverse reactions, such as drug allergies, would be known by the treating medical staff.

“New Jersey’s work on health information technology began in 1999 with the establishment of the Office for Electronic Health Information Technology (e-HIT). As required by ARRA, all states must develop a health IT network that registers every citizen by the end of 2015.

“The grant award marks the culmination of a process among several departments of state government and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. The Statewide Health Information Exchange Cooperative Agreement Program—offered by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology—required states to submit state Health IT Plans that addressed several issues, including privacy, security, and technical infrastructure.

“The four exchanges that received funding have statewide coverage and were selected last fall through a competitive Request for Application process.”