Friday, April 17 | Thought Leadership
Here's What You Need to Know About the New ONC & CMS Final Rules
By Hannah Patterson, Vice President, Workforce Management
A quick glance at the most important updates
Here’s what you need to know about the new final rules from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) that address several provisions of the 21st Century Cures Act.
The ONC Rule:
-
Intends to support the seamless and secure access, exchange, and use of electronic health information (EHI). It focuses on standardized application programming interfaces (APIs), implementing the information-blocking provisions of the Cures Act. It also includes several changes to the current 2015 Certification standards, such as the requirement for EHRs to use the U.S. Core Data for Interoperability (USCDI).
-
Prohibits “information blocking” by payers and health systems, because this practice restricts access to health care information and slows down interoperability. As a result, payers and health systems must then provide data through an API to give patients access to their own data. The rule also identifies activities that don’t constitute information blocking.
-
Establishes secure API requirements to support patients’ access to and control of their own electronic health information.
-
Requires that EHRs provide the clinical data necessary to promote new business models of care.
The CMS Rule:
-
Requires health plans in Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, and HIP to share their claims data electronically with patients.
-
Creates a “Condition of Participation” for all Medicare and Medicaid participating hospitals, which mandates that they send electronic notifications to another health care facility or community provider/practitioner when a patient is admitted, discharged, or transferred.
-
Requires states to submit enrollee data daily (starting on April 1, 2022) for beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare and Medicaid.
For guidance on what these rules mean for you and your practice, visit this webpage from ONC or this webpage from CMS.
Meet the Author
Hannah
Patterson
· Vice President, Workforce Management
Communities
From the CareThreads Blog
Webinar Recap: What’s Next for MCOs After EVV Compliance
Wednesday, September 28 | Value-based Care,Thought Leadership
As the upcoming EVV compliance timeline is quickly approaching, we thought it would be interesting to discover how the initial phase and implementation of EVV has affected managed care organizations (MCOs), and their provider networks. This blog recaps a recent Netsmart webinar that addressed the details of this topic with the talented Dr. Melissa Berdell, Director Fraud, Waste and Abuse at Highmark Wholecare.
More
Part 5: Current State of Peers in the United States - Demographics and Economic Impact
Monday, September 19 | Human Services,Thought Leadership,Value-based Care
In our most recent blog, The Role of Peers and Mutual Support in Alcoholics Anonymous, we discussed the fascinating history of Alcoholics Anonymous and its contributions to today's health care continuum. Evolving in parallel to the mental health peer movement, AA and its affiliate organizations, e.g., Narcotics Anonymous came to identical conclusions about the unique value of mutual support. Join Denny Morrison, as he unpacks how often peers are used, how they are credentialed and how they affect the economics of health care in the United States.
More
A Call for Action: Devastating Medicare Rate Cut Proposed for Home Health
Monday, September 12 | Post-Acute Care,Thought Leadership,Netsmart in the Community,Legislative/Policy
Ready access to quality home healthcare services is critical to the future of our nation’s healthcare system and the millions receiving these services today. Jen Sherman, community strategist, Netsmart will be a voice for home health providers in Washington D.C. at the upcoming NAHC Advocacy Day and shares why the proposed rate cuts by CMS will leave a devastating negative economic and operational impact on home health and post-acute providers.
More