According to Surescripts, e-prescribing increases the likelihood that patients will pick up their prescriptions. Patients whose providers use electronic prescribing are seven percentage points more likely to fill their medications compared with the old paper system. Surescripts provides the infrastructure for nearly all electronic prescribing in the United States.

E-Prescribing offers a number of benefits over the old paper system. First, they are sent via secure internet connection. This makes it much less likely the prescription will be lost or stolen en route. Second, electronic prescriptions makes illegible handwriting a thing of the past. Pharmacists save time trying to decipher the correct medication, dosage, and no longer have to call the physician for clarification. Continue reading: E-Prescribing Improves Chances Patients will Fill Prescriptions

Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island (BCBSRI) recently completed a multi-year pilot program aiming to increase the use of electronic health records (EHR).  Results point to a clear improvement in care among practices using EHR.  In addition, the pilot program showed a reduction in healthcare costs for EHR adopters.

Participating members saved between 17 and 33 percent compared to practices without EHR systems.  EHR allows practices to keep track of health information more easily.  It is also easier to share with other care givers, which helps eliminate duplicate tests.  Duplicate and unnecessary testing is a major contributor to the cost of health care.   Providers without EHR may have to pull many paper results and files to track the effectiveness of a given treatment.  With EHR, a provider can track performance at a glance using built-in charts or reports. Continue reading: BCBS Pilot Program Points to Better Care, Lower Costs for EHR Adopters

As you may be aware, on November 17, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Office of E-Health Standards and Services (CMS OESS) made an announcement that they will be creating a period of relaxed enforcement following the unchanged January 1, 2012 deadline for transition to the HIPAA 5010 claim format.  With the announcement, CMS OESS has said that they will not fully enforce the 5010 claim format requirement until March 31.  CMS OESS is the entity that oversees enforcement for the entire industry, not just CMS as a payer. Continue reading: Understanding the 5010 Transition in Real-Time from ZirMed

2011 is drawing to a close, and many physicians and medical practices are considering their plans for 2012. Whether or not they will adopt electronic health records (EHR) rank among the chief concerns for 2012. Converting to EHR is a big decision; physicians must consider many factors and issues.

However, “questions on whether incentive money is being paid out on Meaningful Use SHOULD NOT be one of them,” according to Todd Greenberg of GSG Capital. GSG Capital is the health care industry’s foremost source of financing for EHR and related software. Their ability to offer low interest rates and rapid closing makes them a favorite of medical practices and EHR vendors. As a result, they have helped many physicians participate in HITECH Stimulus program. Continue reading: You may not Believe in Santa, but you can Believe in Stimulus

Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) is at high risk, according to a new study by the Ponemon Institute. This is the second time Ponemon has conducted its annual benchmark study. It is conducted by interviewing healthcare professionals in hospitals and independent practices.

The study reports data breaches have increased by 32% since last year. Instead of hackers or malicious software, the study finds employee negligence is the primary cause of breaches. The report also states that over half the survey respondents do not protect mobile devices. Data breaches cost the healthcare industry an average of $6.5 billion per year. Continue reading: Data Breaches cost Healthcare Billions