CMS awards $200M IT contract to HP
Mon, 23 Aug 2010 13:34:34 +0000
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has awarded a $200 million contract to HP Enterprise Services for software applications related to Medicare Part B claims processing and the delivery of services to beneficiaries.
The Medicare Part B Shared System Maintainer contract is for one base year with seven one-year renewal options. CMS carriers and Medicare administrative contractors use Medicare's Multi-Carrier System (MCS) to process approximately 750 million Medicare Part B claims annually.
Bernie Monegain
Health IT workforce will require higher skill set
Thu, 12 Aug 2010 13:53:04 +0000
As trends in technology change the employment landscape, training and certifying IT workers will require a higher skill set, said Terry Erdle, senior vice president, skills certification, of CompTIA in remarks he delivered at Breakaway 2010, the premier event for IT companies in North America. For healthcare IT workers, for instance, this may mean having a broader knowledge of areas such as security.
Molly Merrill
California launches nation's largest telehealth network
Tue, 17 Aug 2010 20:43:09 +0000
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and U.S. Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra joined a diverse group of statewide healthcare and technology agencies Tuesday at the UC Davis Cancer Center in Sacramento to launch the California Telehealth Network (CTN), which is set to be the largest in the nation.
Molly Merrill
EHR market projected to double by 2012
Mon, 30 Aug 2010 14:02:13 +0000
The U.S. ambulatory EHR market, which was at $1.3 billion in 2009, is forecast to reach $2.6 billion in 2012, according to new analysis from research firm Frost & Sullivan.
The rate of electronic health record adoption among U.S. physicians expects to increase over the next two to five years due to a combination of changes caused by healthcare reform and financial subsidies from the HITECH program, the report notes.
Bernie Monegain
Study: Texting improves medication adherence in teens with diabetes
Tue, 10 Aug 2010 14:56:54 +0000
A small pilot study at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, found that sending text reminders to adolescent diabetes patients about their insulin treatments improved treatment adherence and blood glucose levels.
According to a 2010 report from the Pew Internet and American Life Project, half of teens send 50 or more text messages a day, or 1,500 texts a month, and one in three send more than 100 texts a day, or more than 3,000 texts a month.
Molly Merrill
ER wait times reduced 22 percent with advanced EHRs
Fri, 20 Aug 2010 14:17:52 +0000
The patients at hospitals with the most advanced type of electronic medical records are likely to spend 22.4 percent less time in the emergency room than at other hospitals, a new study from the W.P.Carey School of Business at Arizona State University shows.
Diana Manos
Registry adds value to regional data exchange
Fri, 03 Sep 2010 11:58:55 +0000
CareSpark, a nonprofit regional health information organization (RHIO) serving Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia, is proving the value of health information exchanges through several projects that rely on its provider registry.
Patty Enrado
Deloitte: Mobile PHRs 'game-changing' for self-care
Fri, 27 Aug 2010 14:26:26 +0000
The convergence of personal health records and mobile communication devices may offer the right tool to engage consumers to use technology for self-care, taking cost out of the healthcare system, according to a new Deloitte Issue Brief from the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions.
Bernie Monegain
Ingenix Consulting starts new technology practice
Wed, 25 Aug 2010 14:40:08 +0000
Ingenix Consulting has announced the launch of its Strategic Technology Solutions practice. The new service aims to help healthcare executives create health IT investment and implementation strategies that enable their organizations to improve patient outcomes, enhance organizational performance and prepare for fundamental shifts occurring in healthcare nationwide.
Mike Miliard
Ingenix to acquire Axolotl
Mon, 16 Aug 2010 21:24:49 +0000
The Ingenix buying spree marches on. In its third major acquisition in less than a month – after its purchase of Picis and Executive Health Resources – the firm, which is the health IT division of UnitedHealth Group, announced on Monday that it is adding San Jose, Calif-based Axolotl to the fold.
Mike Miliard
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