ICD-10 codes don't cover all strokes; HIPAA not applicable to major data breach, community health department says;

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> Although ICD-10 will greatly expand the number of codes used by physicians to classify various ailments, not all strokes are captured, according to research recently published online in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes. A specific ICD-10 code for hemorrhagic transformation after ischemic stroke does not exist, study author Michael T. Mullen, M.D., recently told MedPage Today. Article

> The Michigan Department of Community Health recently notified more than 49,000 individuals that information including their names, birth dates, Social Security numbers and cancer screening test results had been hacked on a server of the Michigan Cancer Consortium. However, the department did not inform the breach to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office for Civil Rights as a HIPAA violation, saying that it did not consider the hacked data to be protected health information, Health Data Management reported. Article

Health Finance News

> Despite the common belief that acquiring physician practices will result in savings, a recent poll conducted by the American College of Physician Executives (ACPE) revealed costs actually increased after a hospital or health system bought a medical group or practice. According to the ACPE poll, 32 percent of the 459 respondents said costs went up after a physician practice acquisition. Article

> In a move rarely seen on the state level, South Carolina has suspended its certificate of need (CON) program, an action seen as either a boost for hospital construction or a catalyst for rising healthcare costs. The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) suspended the CON program for one year as of June 28. Article

Mobile Health News

> Mobile healthcare neither replaces nor displaces health providers but enables and enhances their practices, according to an article in the Online Journal of Nursing Informatics. The authors use three case studies from around the world to demonstrate the potentials of mHealth to fulfill applications in community health, epidemiology, and acute care evidence-based practice, as well as building awareness, capturing data on a near/real time basis, and remotely monitoring chronic health conditions. Article

And Finally… Maybe I'm alone on this, but I don't think Freddie Mercury looks anything like a gorilla. Article