> After a new budget vote this week, Montana's Senate has reversed itself and has agreed to keep p35 million in federal funding that would go toward helping healthcare providers transition to electronic medical records. Article
> The Texas Senate this week passed legislation this week "relating to the privacy of protected health information and personal information." The bill's author says it would prohibit the sale of protected health information and would increase criminal penalties for theft of medical records. Article
> As financial sustainability is becoming a big question for many health information exchanges, two officials of the MidSouth eHealth Alliance say payer participation should be regarded as one of this industry’s necessary solutions. Article
> Changes made last fall to the 3M Grouper Software Coding and Reimbursement System have adversely impacted hospitals' ability to correctly identify the appropriate patient populations for their fourth-quarter 2010 surgical quality measures as part of the Medicare hospital quality reporting program, the American Hospital Association recently told CMS. Release
And Finally...Better health may only be a phone call away. Article