Organization

American Hospital Association


Health Affairs: EMR transition could take some time

Industry News | Friday, August 27 2010
The adoption of basic or comprehensive EHR systems by U.S. hospitals increased from 8.7 percent in 2008 to 11.9 percent in 2009, but only 2 percent of hospitals met the federal meaningful use standards needed to qualify for government financial incentives, according to an article published Aug. 26 in an advance online edition of Health Affairs.
 

Selberg named IHI's exec VP, COO

Executive Announcements | Tuesday, August 24 2010
Jeffrey D. Selberg will join the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) as executive vice president and chief operating officer, effective Sept. 1.
 

CMS cuts hospital payments by 2.9%

Top Stories | Saturday, July 31 2010
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a prospective payment system final rule for fiscal year 2011 for acute-care and long-term care hospitals that would decrease average inpatient payments by 0.4 percent.
 

Societies react to meaningful use rules with mixed opinions, support materials

Industry News | Wednesday, July 14 2010
The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Tuesday released the long anticipated final rules for identifying the criteria for hospitals and eligible providers to become meaningful users of health IT. Prominent professional societies have responded with supportive materials for eligible providers and hospitals, as well as reactions to the final rules.
 

25 orgs urge FDA to create 'unique device identification' system for medical devices

Industry News | Tuesday, July 13 2010
The Advancing Patient Safety Coalition has urged FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, MD, to issue a proposed rule to establish a “unique device identification” (UDI) system for medical devices in a letter last week.
 

With RAC program, targeted strategies and oversight may be best

Industry News | Thursday, June 24 2010
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has released updates to the three-year evaluation, begun in July 2008, regarding information related to the Medicare Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) program. Other organizations, such as the American Hospital Association (AHA), have provided tactics and statistics to help providers weather the storm.
 

AHA: Hospitals contribute 16% of GDP, 5.3 million jobs to U.S. economy

Top Stories | Wednesday, June 23 2010
U.S. hospitals provide economic stability and even growth during times of recession, employing more than 5.3 million people in 2008, according to a recent report from the American Hospital Association (AHA).
 

Cohort of 53 organizations urges greater flexibility on MU regs

Industry News | Thursday, May 06 2010
A cohort of 53 organizations including the American College of Radiology and the American Hospital Association sent a letter this week to Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Kathleen Sebelius to provide “greater flexibility in meeting meaningful use.”
 

AHA: 55% of hospitals expect to incur meaningful use penalties

Industry News | Monday, April 26 2010
Fifty-five percent of responding hospitals expect to incur penalties for failing to demonstrate meaningful use by 2015, according to a trend report from the American Hospital Association (AHA).
 

Report: Data breaches, patient identity thefts still a threat despite new laws

Industry News | Thursday, April 22 2010
Despite new regulations in the HITECH Act, data breaches and medical identity theft remains at critical levels throughout hospitals in the U.S., where 83.6 percent of providers have data breaches every year, according to a report from identity theft prevention contractor Identity Force.
 

HealthAffairs: For improved costs and quality, EHRs alone may not be enough

Clinical Studies | Wednesday, April 07 2010
The implementation of EHR systems may not be enough to significantly improve health quality and reduce costs, according to a study in the April issue of Health Affairs. Researchers from the Mongan Institute for Health Policy at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston reported finding that currently implemented systems have little effect on measures such as patient mortality, surgical complications, length of stay and costs.
 

Congress to CMS: Modify meaningful use requirements

Top Stories | Thursday, March 18 2010
In a letter to Charlene M. Frizzera, acting administrator for the Centers of Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), 235 members of the U.S. House of Representatives urged CMS to modify its proposed definition and requirements for hospitals to qualify for the meaningful use of health IT incentive payments.
 

AHA: Rising costs account for most of growth in spending on hospital care

Industry News | Tuesday, March 16 2010
Rising costs to hospitals accounted for 64 percent of the overall growth in spending on hospital care between 2004 and 2008, according to a report issued this month by the American Hospital Association (AHA).
 

AHA: Offer incremental meaningful use objectives model, add 12 objectives

Industry News | Wednesday, March 10 2010
The American Hospital Association (AHA) has offered an alternative approach for the definition of meaningful use, including the addition of 12 objectives to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
 

AHA on healthcare reform: More positives than negatives

Top Stories | Wednesday, January 13 2010
The American Hospital Association (AHA) has sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., urging that Congress maintain the level of insurance coverage offered in the House version of healthcare reform when it reconciles the competing Senate and House healthcare reform bills.
 

Industry groups differ on value of ONC's meaningful use proposals

Industry News | Monday, January 04 2010
The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society believes there is much more to applaud than criticize concerning the release of interim final rules on meaningful use and qualified EHRs from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC). However, the American Hospital Association noted that while health IT holds “great promise in improving care, widespread efforts toward adoption will be hindered unless key provisions in these rules are addressed.”
 

AMA endorses Senate healthcare bill; vote looms

Top Stories | Tuesday, December 22 2009
The American Medical Association (AMA) has endorsed the Senate version of healthcare reform.
 

Demographics, health risks drive geographic healthcare spending variance

Industry News | Thursday, November 12 2009
As U.S. healthcare costs inflate, factors such as insurance status, demographics and increased patient health risk must be investigated when defining ways to realign healthcare spending, according to a report released by the American Hospital Association this week.
 

Study: EHR adoption encouraged for providers serving the poor

Clinical Studies | Wednesday, October 28 2009
According to a study published online Oct. 26 in Health Affairs, EHR adoption by hospitals that serve a large population of poor patients should be a major policy goal of health reform measures.
 
Web Exclusives

Feature: U.S. needs national strategy to curb imaging overutilization

Medical imaging overutilization--a growing concern in the U.S.--exposes patients to unnecessary radiation, while also adding to rising healthcare costs, according to a study published online Aug. 24 in Radiology. In an interview, William R. Hendee, PhD, lead author, reviewed various methods by which medical imaging could be curtailed.

Radiology: Prelim study shows CE breast CT outperforms CT, mammo

Dedicated contrast-enhanced (CE) breast CT delivered significantly improved conspicuity of malignant breast lesions, including ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), compared with unenhanced breast CT and mammography, according to a study published in the September issue of Radiology.

Radiology: Rad role may evolve as image-guided biopsies trend up

CT, ultrasound and MRI have helped shift biopsy techniques away from more invasive approaches toward image-guided percutaneous techniques, according to a study published in the September issue of Radiology. The trend toward less-invasive approaches translates into enhanced safety and efficiency and could lead to more interaction between patients and radiologists.

CMS Webinar: Incentive payments to offset EHR adoption, not reimburse

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) EHR incentive payments are not considered reimbursement for money expended on EHR technology, but are intended to offset the cost associated with adoption and ongoing meaningful use, according to CMS during an Aug. 12 webinar.

CMS webinar: Eligible professionals can expect EHR incentives in 2011

Funding incentives for EHR use is the main goal of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' (CMS) meaningful use initiative, and there are incentive programs for both hospitals and eligible professionals, according to Elizabeth Holland, health insurance specialist at the Department of Health and Human Services, who spoke during a CMS-sponsored webinar Aug. 8.

Webinar: Stage 1 of meaningful use is for quality reporting acclimation

Stage 1 requirements for meaningful use incentives aim to strike a balance between the overall goal of EHR use and widespread adoption, while avoiding added work, said Jonathan Teich, MD, PhD, chief medical informatics officer at Elsevier Health Services, during a HIMSS webinar titled “Meaningful Use: Safety and Quality of Care.”

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