What you need to know about the HITECH Act of 2009

Greene Health Care Inc welcomes President Obama’s February 17th, 2009 signing of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act (part of the Stimulus package known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act). We also support the President’s choice of Dr. David Blumenthal, M.D., M.P.P. as the choice for National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. As the new National Coordinator, Dr. Blumenthal will lead the implementation of a nationwide interoperable, privacy-protected health information technology infrastructure as called for in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Blumenthal and his team will also be instrumental in setting the various standards and reporting policies for participation in the HITECH Act. An indication of the direction those standards will take was made by the HIT Policy committee when they announced their first recommendations on June 16 (see the “Latest News”).

Although this act in its current state does not cover hospice and home health, in keeping with our mission to be hospice and home health’s most trusted business partner, we will work to ensure that we provide you with information on any future developments. The act however includes up to $44,000 in total incentives per physician under Medicare for “meaningful use” of an Electronic Health Record (EHR) starting in 2011. (Note: Physicians reimbursed by Medicaid can receive up to $63,500 starting in 2011 based on state-defined guidelines). The Department of Health and Human Services won’t release the specific requirements for “meaningful use” until the end of the year. However, HHS’s HIT Policy Committee will present recommendations for what the requirements should be throughout the year. Our staff and partners are constantly researching any new developments and will keep you updated with any decisions that will affect hospice and home health.

Although the specific requirements have not been issued yet, we do know that in order to qualify for incentive payments, physicians must:

• Use a “Certified” EHR: The act does not specify what “certification” will mean or who will provide certification. (Note, there is general consensus that the certifying organization will be the independent Certification Commission for Health Care Information Technology (CCHIT). Greene Health Care Inc and it’s partners will ensure that they meet any required certification.) What the act does specify is that to be qualified as a certified EHR, the certified technology must include patient demographic and clinical health information and have the capacity to provide clinical decision and physician order entry. Greene Health Care Inc, our EHR offering, already offers this functionality.
• Demonstrate “Meaningful Use” of an EHR: Health and Human Services (HHS) will be defining what “meaningful use” means in the year ahead (see the “Latest News” for updates). However, because Greene Health Care Inc is web-based, we are well positioned to quickly incorporate any requirements mandated as “meaningful use.” The following conditions for “meaningful use” have already been identified. The EHR must:

• Use e-Prescribing: This means that the EHR must allow physicians to prescribe over the Internet.; and Prescription Routing for New Prescriptions (mail-order).
• Electronically Exchange Information: Unlike most EHR offerings, athenaClinicals is network-based, meaning that it already exchanges clinical information with dozens of labs, hospitals, providers, and payers across the country (including Medicare and Medicaid). With our central hub for electronic data interchange, we can affect information exchange with such additional organizations as the HITECH Act may require.
• Submit Clinical Quality Measures: use of a rules database provides a set of payer-specific quality measures – including existing Pay for Performance (P4P) measures such as Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI).
• In addition to the above requirements specified in the act, the HIT Policy committee proposed on June 16th that “meaningful use” include communication with patients and families (e.g. appointment reminders, access to lab results, etc.).

The HITECH Act is clearly an ideal opportunity for physicians who use EHRs effectively to be rewarded and to stimulate adoption for those who aren’t currently using EHRs. As always, we are here to help you navigate through the complex health care environment, maximize your revenue, and focus on quality care.