Jul 26, 2023
Cohosts Brent McKune and Stephen Williams of Kentucky REC introduce Episode 10 of Kentucky REC’s PILL Podcast. This episode, with KY State HIT Director and KHIE Deputy Executive Director Andrew Bledsoe, explores how the Kentucky Health Information Exchange is leading the HIE marketplace with innovative services, as well as advancing interoperability in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Learn more about KHIE at their website, KHIE.ky.gov
Andrew Bledsoe is currently KY State HIT Director and KHIE Deputy Executive Director.
The intersection of health information technology with quality care delivery has provided Andrew with a unique perspective over his nearly 20 years in healthcare. Starting his career in a regional hospital, he quickly learned the challenges in healthcare, especially rural medicine, and began investing in the concept of leveraging health information technology to improve outcomes for patients. His current appointment within the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services primarily focuses on implementing the KHIE Strategic and Operational Plan, promoting the statewide exchange of patient health information, spearheading a number of new services designed to improve care coordination, and offer new avenues to reduce reporting burdens and foster inter-agency collaboration.
Listen to our podcast on Buzzsprout, or Spotify and Apple Podcasts. All previous episodes are available.
If you need assistance with health information technology, contact the Kentucky REC at 859-323-3090 or by email.
May 9, 2023
Kentucky REC expert advisors are hosting a webinar on the Medicare Promoting Interoperability (PI) Program for Eligible Hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals. We will review the 2023 Medicare PI requirements and highlight the recently released FY 2024 Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) proposed rule.
MEDICARE PROMOTING INTEROPERABILITY PROGRAM FOR HOSPITALS
WEDNESDAY JUNE 7 12:00 – 1:00 PM ET
Historical Background of the Program:
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 mandated that CMS incentivize hospitals to adopt, implement, and upgrade certified electronic health record technology (CEHRT) and demonstrate meaningful use. In response, the EHR Incentive Program, (formerly known as Meaningful Use), was first introduced in 2011 under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act. CMS implemented the program in progressively more difficult stages and initially offered incentive payments to participants. The incentives continued through 2016 for most hospitals, depending on which year they started in the program.
Although the incentive phase of the program ended long ago, hospitals must continue to participate in the program each year to avoid a downward Medicare financial adjustment.
As we progressed through Stages 1, 2 and 3, CMS maintained their underlying focus on the adoption and implementation of CEHRT through an evolution of objectives, measures, and electronic Clinical Quality Measures (eCQMs) tailored to meet their goals. More recently, CMS overhauled the program, improving flexibility, relieving burden, and placing emphasis on measures that require the electronic exchange of health information between providers and patients. CMS shifted their focus to interoperability and improving patient access to health information. These changes moved the program beyond the previously existing requirements into a new phase of EHR measurement.
The Medicare Promoting Interoperability Program, as you know it today, includes a set of objectives, measures, eCQMs, and other requirements that together define whether a hospital has met the minimum standards to be considered a meaningful user. Hospitals that do not meet the minimum program requirements, meaning they’re not meaningful users of CEHRT, receive a downward payment adjustment.
Contact the experts at Kentucky REC with all your Promoting Interoperability questions. We’re here to help: 859-323-3090.