ONC zeros in on EHR safety
The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) has launched an EHR safety challenge calling on software developers to create an app to help users identify patient safety concerns.
Launched this week, ONC has asked developers to focus on an app that integrates with the EHR workflow, minimizes the time it takes to create a safety report, allows users to choose who to report concerns to and is EHR platform-agnostic.
Submissions are due by Oct. 15. $80,000 in prizes will be available. Announcement
LifeBridge reports 500,000 patient breach
Maryland-based LifeBridge health has sent letters to 500,000 patients warning them that their information was compromised in a recent cyberattack.
The breach, which took place in September of last year, involved a hacker that accessed the hospital's servers through one of its physician practices, according to the Baltimore Sun. Information includes Social Security Numbers and insurance information.
The company is offering credit monitoring to all patients affected by the breach. Baltimore Sun article
House passes VA EHR bill
Amid a slew of veteran bills that passed the House of Representatives on Tuesday, one will provide some accountability to the VA’s EHR modernization project.
The bill requires the agency to give lawmakers plans for the new system and provide Congress with quarterly updates. Officials would also have to notify lawmakers about any schedule changes within five days. Nextgov article
AAP taps SnapMD as telehealth provider
The American Academy of Pediatrics has chosen SnapMD to provide telehealth services for its Virtual Care Management Program.
The program includes 66,000 pediatricians, surgeons and specialists, and provides pediatric practices with the technical infrastructure to perform telehealth visits under their own brand and using their own clinicians. Release