Health Care IT Spending to Grow
Information technology
(IT) spending is
expected to surge
in the coming
years, concluded
2 studies.
A significant portion of the
health-IT spending growth will stem from
state and local governments, particularly
as the majority of them revamp their
Medicaid management systems in the
next 5 years. Health-IT spending from
both sectors will increase to $10.8 billion
in 2012 from only $6.9 billion in 2007,
according to a report by the research
firm Input.
Within the next 5 years, 29 of 35
states, plus Washington, DC, that outsource
the operations of their Medicaid
management systems will have those
contracts up for review. Meanwhile,
many of the 15 states that operate their
own Medicaid management systems
also will be looking for ways to enhance
those systems, including the possibility
of outsourcing those operations, according
to report author Chris Dixon, manager
of state and local industry analysis at
Input.
Currently, the management of Medicaid
systems includes a combination of
computerized systems and manual
processes. As states progress to more
advanced systems, they will look to vendors
that can implement technologies to
improve the administrative end of
Medicaid, said Dixon.
A second study, conducted by
Datamonitor, suggested that widespread
adoption of electronic health record
(EHR) systems in North America and
Europe will increase EHR spending in
those areas from $4.4 billion in 2007 to
$13 billion in 2012.
AERC Acquisition Allows for
Advance in Data Disposal
AERC.com Inc recently announced the
expansion of its secure data destruction
and disposal operations. The expansion
is a result of assets acquired from
DynTek, a technology services provider.
The acquisition is part of an aggressive
investment strategy that will allow Com-
Cycle, AERC's wholly owned subsidiary
and its electronics recycling business
unit, to focus on the rising data security
and recycling concerns in industries such
as health care. Improper management of
medical records and hazardous materials
holds serious legal and ethical implications,
resulting in heavy fines and
penalties.
Peter J. Jegou, chief executive officer
of AERC and Com-Cycle, said that the
investment "provides a secure audit trail
for compliance with HIPAA [Health
Insurance Portability and Accountability
Act of 1996] and similar regulations."
"In industries such as health care, confidentiality
and privacy are at stake.
Protecting the confidential records of
these companies—and their patients
and customers—is of utmost importance.
The new software program and
end-of-market asset-management software
offer new options for research centers,
medical centers, hospitals, diagnostic
laboratories, patient service centers,
and health care clinics with concerns
about data security and waste hazard
risks," added Lindsay Landmesser, vice
president of sales.
Study Tests Electronic Tools to
Monitor Seniors’ Meds
Researchers
at the Meyers
Primary Care
Institute have
started a project
to test
health-information
technology tools as solutions to
the dangers posed when seniors are discharged
out of the hospital to primary
care or to home.
The study's funding stems from a 3-year, $1.2-million grant from the federal
Agency for Healthcare Research and
Quality. The University of Massachusetts
Medical School, the Fallon Clinic, and the
Fallon Community Health Plan (FCHP) are
collaborating on the project.
The study's purpose is to determine if
systems based on electronic health
records (EHRs) prevent adverse drug
events, emergency room visits, and
repeat hospitalizations. "We have come
to the conclusion that it is really all the
drugs that doctors and other health
providers prescribe," said lead author
Jerry H. Gurwitx, MD. "It is not just a certain
finite list of medications that lead to
problems. Mainly it is how drugs are
used, how drugs are prescribed, how
drugs are monitored, and how patients
take them that can lead to problems."
The study will test the medication-reconciliation
system on nearly 30,000
members of FCHP's senior plan who
receive their medical care from the
Fallon Clinic.
When members of the plan go to hospital
emergency rooms or become hospitalized,
their primary care physicians in
some instances will receive e-mail alerts
about changes in their medications and
be notified when high-risk medications
require further monitoring. Patients who
make appointments also will receive
alerts, and additional messages will be
sent if the appointments or laboratory
tests are cancelled.
The data will be assessed anonymously
in order to track how many patients
return to the emergency room or hospital
and see how many of their physicians
received special alerts.
ESC Helps Prevent Drug
Counterfeiting
The Florida
Agency for
Health Care Administration
recently implemented
an electronic health
record (EHR) for Medicaid
recipients.
The test project will use medical
claims data to create an EHR for each
Medicaid beneficiary from the Tallahassee–
Leon County, Florida, area. In
time, the records will hold laboratory
and radiology results and other key
medical information.
The agency plans to go statewide with
EHRs for Medicaid recipients following a
review and analysis of the test. The
Florida interChange system is scheduled
to go live this year.
