Electronic Medical Records (EMRs)

Tobacco settlement to fund healthcare in Washington, DC

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 06:59:55 -0400

It's been ten years since Washington, DC was awarded $245 million--its share of the tobacco industry's 1998 historical class action settlement with the states. Rand Corp. has produced a report to help provide guidance to the District about how it could best make use of the funds, suggesting that roughly $90 million be invested in local community health centers to reach the District's most underserved residents. Rand has also recommended that $24 million go to improving electronic medical records systems and $7.5 million for mental and oral healthcare. Mayor Adrian Fenty has said that he will also seek input from community leaders and other stakeholders before making any final decisions. Part of the funds will also be earmarked for grants and others public/private partnerships.

For more info:
- see The Washington Post story
- also The Rand Corporation study

Allina plans $100 million health innovation center

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 06:59:54 -0400

Allina Hospitals & Clinics has launched a $100 million Center for Health Innovation dedicated to public health and healthcare quality. The 11-hospital system plans to spend $10 million annually for the first five years, and generate the remaining $50 million from donors and grants. The center's first three projects will include an initiative targeting cardiovascular disease in New Ulm, Minn., since almost nine out of 10 of the area's residents seek care at Allina's 45-bed New Ulm Medical Center, which gives it a leg up in using electronic medical record data to track the disease in the community. Allina will also work to improve health status in two diverse Twin Cities neighborhoods where the system operates an acute-care hospital and its headquarters. Yet another project is a patient-safety center that will focus on research and outcomes projects not duplicating those elsewhere in the country.

To learn more about the center:
- read this Modern Healthcare article (reg. req.)

VistA may be in its waning years; How hospitals are thinning down ED crowding; and much more...

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 06:59:50 -0400

> For many years, the VA's VistA open source EMR has been held up as an example for the industry to follow. Now, it's looking like VistA may be in its waning years. FierceHealthIT

> This week's meeting of the American Diabetes Association is yielding some big news, including updates on the effectiveness of a handful of blockbuster diabetes drugs. FiercePharma

> Today's Wall Street Journal blog item offers some interesting ideas on how hospitals are thinning down emergency department crowding. Article

> A Swiss company should be able to introduce an experimental malaria vaccine as early as 2014. FierceVaccines

And Finally... If you want to work here, you'd better have a favorite girl you can pop the question to--quickly! Article

ALSO NOTED: Number of uninsured young people rises; Study shows problems in physician EMR adoption; and much more...

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 06:59:50 -0400

> New research suggests that the number of young adults going without health insurance rose again in 2006, with 34 percent of college graduates spending some time uninsured in the year after graduation. Article

> Want to know just how hard it will be to get physician holdouts on board with electronic medical records? This study by the Texas Medical Association may offer a glimpse. FierceHealthIT

> With the heparin scare fresh on people's minds, now China is reporting that six patients have died after injections of immunoglobulins. FiercePharma

> While the admittedly scary side-effects aren't that common, scripts for anti-smoking drug Chantrix have fallen dramatically, in a trend one doctor calls "fear-driven." FiercePharma

And Finally... In death, Fredric J. Baur will spend eternity with his proudest invention. Article

ALSO NOTED: MD group wants pay for online work; Lilly working out its Zyprexa problem; and much more...

Fri, 30 May 2008 06:59:50 -0400

> The American College of Physicians has had enough. If you want its members to spend tons of extra time working with electronic medical records and personal health records and countless other categories of online stuff, pay them for their time, darn it! FierceHealthIT

> It looks like drugmaker Eli Lilly is working out the its tsuris with the FDA over an approval for a long-acting, injectable form of its antipsychotic drug Zyprexa. FiercePharma

> After testing the system for just a few months, Tenet Healthcare now allows patients to pay their hospital bills online. FierceHealthFinance

> Among the first conclusions drawn by Consumer Reports' analysis of hospital care is that they vary widely in how aggressively they treat nine chronic conditions. Article

And Finally... Here's a chilling look at an extremely rare disorder that causes otherwise normal people to do some unthinkable things. Article

ALSO NOTED: CMS approves initial DME vendors for competitive bidding program; Nonprofit hospitals begin giving away EMRs; and m

Tue, 20 May 2008 06:59:50 -0400

> CMS has approved an initial group of 325 medical equipment suppliers to participate in its new competitive-bidding program, despite questions hanging over the second phase of the program. Article (reg. req.)

> With the IRS having set forth its criteria for safely doing so, non-profit hospitals have cautiously started to offer free- and low-cost electronic medical record systems to their doctors. FierceHealthIT

> Which pharma CEOs are getting the biggest paychecks? Here, for your reading pleasure, is a list of the top 17 best-paid execs. FiercePharma

> Vaccine makers say that they're planning to produce record amounts of flu vaccine for next season. FierceVaccines

And Finally... Until the owner pays for his behavior, this donkey will be remain behind bars. Article

ALSO NOTED: Health plans vow premium, reimbursement crackdown; Diabetes drug spending takes lead position; and much more...

Thu, 15 May 2008 06:59:50 -0400

> Hoping to calm nervous investors, health plans are promising Wall Street types that they're going to hike premiums and ratchet down payments to providers. Good luck, guys. FierceHealthFinance

> Here's some interesting news: Diabetes drugs have displaced cholesterol drugs as the leading drivers of prescription drug spending growth. FiercePharma

> In a recent blog entry, the Wall Street Journal's Jacob Goldstein contends that retail clinics are reaching a "Bust" stage, with some clinics closing and other companies scaling back. Blog

> In an effort to make their lives easier--and decisions simpler--New Hampshire's Blue plan is giving its physicians access to its electronic medical record via mobile devices. FierceHealthIT

And Finally... If a roach breeds in space, does anyone hear it? Article

ALSO NOTED: S&P to rate non-profit hospitals' IT investments; Pharmas winning legal battle over pre-emption; and much more...

Wed, 14 May 2008 06:59:50 -0400

> Ratings firm Standard & Poor's has announced that it plans to track not-for-profit hospitals' IT investments and factor them in significantly in how they rate the hospitals' financial health. FierceHealthFinance

> It looks like pharmaceutical companies may be winning one of their key arguments--that since they're regulated by the FDA, plaintiffs are pre-empted from suing in state courts. Let's see what the Supremes think. FiercePharma

> Think your electronic medical record system is just for patient care? Think again, say policy makers and researchers. FierceHealthIT

> Stem cell researchers who managed to engineer a human embryo are now facing criticism that their work is a big step toward designing babies. FierceBioResearcher

And Finally... What includes Harry Truman's 1948 Democratic National Convention speech, Michael Jackson's "Thriller" and Fiorello LaGuardia reading comics? Article

More UCLA staffers cited for record snooping

Tue, 13 May 2008 06:59:58 -0400

California regulators have identified an additional 14 staffers connected with UCLA Medical Center who improperly viewed celebrity medical records. This brings the total number of current and former staffers found to have snooped on such records to 68. UCLA previously announced that it was investigating 13 staff members for accessing Britney Spears's medical records.

California's Department of Public Health, which sent a report to the hospital on the issue last week, faulted the hospital for failing to maintain patient confidentiality and report breaches to regulators. According to the regulators, the hospital was unaware that the 14 people had looked at the records, despite the fact that one of them was the co-worker of Lawanda Jackson, a former administrative specialist with the hospital who has been indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly selling information to the news media from celebrity medical records.

To learn more about UCLA's confidentiality problem:
- read this Los Angeles Times article

Related Articles:
UCLA staff accused of viewing Britney Spears's records
Union fights suspensions for viewing star's records
Park Nicollet suspends employees for EMR snooping

ALSO NOTED: Bird flu pandemic risk rising; Los Angeles hospitals struggle with excess demand; and much more...

Mon, 12 May 2008 06:59:50 -0400

> Experts are warning that the risk of a bird flu pandemic is rising. FierceBioResearcher

> Los Angeles hospitals are struggling mightily to cope with excess demand created by the closure of King-Harbor Medical Center. While it was going to reopen in February 2009, some now fear that the planned re-opening will be delayed for years. Article

> Kaiser Permanente has put the finishing touches on the outpatient phase of its costly electronic medical records project. FierceHealthIT

> Iowa nurses should get a raise with the state's hospitals getting a 1 percent boost in Medicaid reimbursement. Article

And Finally... This guy performed a tracheotomy on himself without anesthesia--twice. Article