What's Coming
The recently passed ARRA Bill (Stimulus) and the Health Care
Bill have a tremendous impact on the health care industry. While the
Stimulus bill focuses on utilizing technology that makes health
care more efficient, the Health Care Bill looks at new and innovative
ways to deliver care in a more integrated healthcare delivery environment.
Technology provides the foundation for the intended transformation.
ARRA Programs
The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act seeks to improve
American health care delivery and patient care through an unprecedented investment in health
information technology. The provisions of the HITECH Act are specifically designed to work
together to provide the necessary assistance and technical support to providers, enable
coordination and alignment within and among states, establish connectivity to the public health
community in case of emergencies, and assure the workforce is properly trained and equipped to
be meaningful users of EHRs. Combined these programs build the foundation for every American
to benefit from an electronic health record, as part of a modernized, interconnected, and vastly
improved system of care delivery.
State Health Information Exchange Cooperative Agreement Program
Health Information Technology Extension Program
Strategic Health IT Advanced Research Projects (SHARP) Program
Community College Consortia to Educate Health Information Technology
Professionals Program
Program of Assistance for University-Based Training
Competency Examination for Individuals Completing Non-Degree Training Program
Beacon Community
Program
Medical Home: Proivides accessable , continuous, coordinated and comprehensive patient-centered
care, and are managed centrally by a primary care physician with the active involvement of
non-physician practice staff. Providers deemed a medical home receive supplemental payments to
support operations expected of a medical home. Physician practices may be encouraged or required
to improve practice infrastructure and meet certain qualifications in order to achieve eligibility.
Medical Homes are intended to encourage a population-based, proactive and planned approach to care,
whereby care is coordinated across various providers to facilitate the provision of recommended
services, eliminate redundancies or unnecessary care, and engage patients.
Accountable Care Organizations: Dr. Elliott Fisher of Dartmouth Medical School, a primary originator of the concept,
defined it as “a provider-led organization whose mission is to manage the full continuum
of care and be accountable for the overall costs and quality of care for a defined population”
and listed several provider groupings that could form ACOs. The 2010 Health Care bill
provides additional criteria, including having a formal legal structure and administrative
systems, meeting CMS requirements for quality assurance and reporting, and serving at least
5000 Medicare beneficiaries. The Health Care Bill also specifies a January 1, 2012 start date.
The goal of an ACO is to reduce costs and improve quality of care through cooperation and
coordination among providers.