03/11/2010
The Department of Veterans Affairs is working to develop Aviva, a new electronic health record system designed to supplant the agency's 20-year-old VistA EHR platform. The Aviva system is designed to be Web-enabled and interoperable with other agencies' health IT systems. Government Health IT.
03/11/2010
The Health IT Policy Committee's strategic planning work group recently discussed how to strengthen health IT privacy while also promoting research. Members suggested allowing consumers to decide how to share their health data. InformationWeek, Federal Computer Week.
03/11/2010
On Thursday, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT published in the Federal Register a proposed rule creating a temporary and a permanent program to approve entities to certify electronic health records. The public will have 30 days to comment on the temporary program and 60 days to comment on the permanent one. Healthcare IT News, Health Data Management.
03/09/2010
The National eHealth Collaborative recently launched a no-cost Webinar series called "NHIN University" to educate stakeholders about the Nationwide Health Information Network. ONC officials will offer presentations for the series. Healthcare IT News, Health Data Management.
03/03/2010
The National Institute of Standards and Technology is seeking contractors to test health information exchange standards to determine how effectively they meet the needs of providers and health organizations. The stimulus package requires the testing. Government Health IT.
02/26/2010
Of the $100 million California will receive in federal stimulus funding for health care, officials plan to use $38.8 million to create a statewide health information exchange. Officials said the state could use the grant to build on existing health data networks. Healthcare IT News.
02/12/2010
The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives has launched a new certification program designed specifically for health care CIOs. Candidates for the program must pass an exam evaluating their ability to handle complex CIO situations. InformationWeek.
02/11/2010
America's Health Insurance Plans and the BlueCross BlueShield Association are teaming up for a New Jersey pilot program that will help physicians check patient coverage and track claims. Five of the state's major insurers will offer data through the Web portal. New York Times.
02/03/2010
The latest Journal of the American Medical Association includes a perspective piece calling for a framework to monitor electronic health record safety. Another commentary looks at EHRs in the context of new social networking tools. Journal of the American Medical Association.
02/01/2010
A new Government Accountability Office report finds that the departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs have achieved interoperability between their electronic health record systems. However, the report also found that the agencies have many challenges to overcome before they can debut their joint virtual lifetime EHR project. Federal Computer Week, Government Health IT.
01/27/2010
Health IT Standards Panel Chair John Halamka announced that the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT has approved a no-cost contract extension for HITSP. ONC will stop funding HITSP when its previous contract expires at the end of this month. Health Data Management.
01/26/2010
The Health IT Standards Panel is expected to cease its operations when its contract expires this Sunday. John Halamka, HITSP chair, said the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT likely will seek proposals soon for a new standards organization. Government Health IT.
01/20/2010
The Certification Commission for Health IT has updated its electronic health record certification programs to conform to HHS' recently released Interim Final Rule on EHR standards and certification. CCHIT will begin accepting certification applications Feb. 12. Healthcare IT News, Health Data Management.
01/15/2010
Booz Allen Hamilton has won a $400,000 contract to help plan a process for certifying electronic health record systems. The National Institute of Standards and Technology is supporting the project with funds from the 2009 federal economic stimulus package. Government Health IT.
01/08/2010
Electronic health record systems approved by the Certification Commission for Health IT appear to be the closest to achieving the federal government's new "meaningful use" criteria, according to a recent KLAS report. However, officials have yet to indicate whether CCHIT will serve as an official certifying body for the stimulus law's health IT incentive program. Modern Healthcare.