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MEANINGFUL USE AND THE EHR Part1

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How can providers ensure that they will meet all the requirements for EHR reimbursement under the ARRA?  The final rules were released 10 days ago, and CareTEC along with Practice Partner will attempt to go over the changes that were made from the original rules.

Practice Partner, an Electronic Medical Record Software program is in good shape to be certified as an EHR that provides all of the tools for meaningful use.

1.  For Medicare, midlevels like PA’s and Nurse Practitioners do not qualify as providers.  For Medicaid, they do.

2.  For 2010 to get your money from Medicare, all you will have to do is attest that you meet the requirements!  That’s it, no reports to submit, no electronic medical recordsto submit, nada.

3.  For Medicare, there is no requirements that x% of your patients be Medicare.  You only have to be a participating provider.  The way the law is written, your reimbursement is capped at 80% of your total allowable charges submitted to Medicare.  So, since the 1st year is $18,000, once you have submitted $25K of allowable charges per provider, you will get your full amount for the year.

Practice Partner Medical Records, an EMR, will allow you to quickly determine how many patients you have enrolled in Medicare and Medicaid.For Medicaid, you have to have a patient population of >30%, and if you are a pediatrician it has to be >20% to qualify.

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DATA MINING THE EHR

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Practice Partner’s EMR uses Patient Inquiry to data mine information stored in the electronic health record.  With Patient Inquiry you can print, or store a report based on a relational inquiry.  You can also save an inquiry in the EHR and run it again later.

CareTEC has trained all of it’s clients to use this valuable tool  as it will increase revenue, helps the clinic meet PQRI standards and quality of care requirements when implemented.

The results of the EMR’s Patient Inquiry can be used in a variety of ways.  For example, you can generate form letters and labels for reminder notes to patients or selectively print the charts of patients who meet special criteria for research purposes.  Another added benefit is the ability to run reports for Health Maintenance Screenings that are over-due for patients.  Medications that have been recalled can be accessed for the entire EMR in seconds, thus enabling the clinic to notify patients in a timely manner.

A special feature of the EHR is the ability to furnish a statistical summary.  Both the number and percentage of patients who meet all the criteria you specify are printed on the selection criterion report.

With a few simple mouse clicks, reports can be generated  using a combination of report items (up to 16).  The wide variety of report items available in Practice Partner makes it possible to search effectively through all your patient data.

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Educating Patients-Documentation made easy

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EMR Software now comes with a Patient Education Module which allows the physician to document with ease specialized handouts given to patients.  Practice Partner  implements the Patient Education module also known as a Health Advisor in their EMR  program. The EMR includes a tool called Patient Profile that automatically selects the appropriate education module for patients by analyzing the patient’s age and sex.  Some of the handouts are available in English and Spanish versions. Images are attached in the EMR Patient Education Module,  thus enhancing the usefulness of this particular documentation tool.

There are five separate modules included in Patient Education:  Pediatrics, Behavioral, Adult, Senior and Women.  For example, for a woman age 35, the Women’s Health Advisor module loads because it is the most suitable module for a woman of this age.  For a man age 55, the Senior Health Advisor module loads.  Physicians  who have particular handouts that have been  part of their on-going treatment plans, and wish to  continue using them, will find that CareTEC will support and customize these articles as part of their ongoing technical support of the EMR product.

At the end of the patient visit, the EMR product will document the Patient Education documents selected for the patient automatically with no additional “mouse” or keyboarding strokes.  Documentation done, physician note completed, patient given additional educational materials related to their specific needs, and all finished in an easy and user friendly manner. Education  and Documentation made EASY!

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Order Entry Completes the EMR Software Loop

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Completing the EMR software loop

Practice Partner’s

Order Entry is a computerized physician order entry module for Patient Records.  Order Entry can be used to electronically enter, review, and report on laboratory, radiology, consults, special studies, pathology, and other diagnostic tests.

EMR Software can use Order Entry to reduce data entry errors by replacing paper-based systems for writing diagnostic and treatment orders for patients.  The EHR can utilize Order Entry to provide significant information at the time an order is initiated.  The information can include the  patients insurance plan, order-specific diagnosis codes, order-specific patient and processor instructions as well as facility requirements. Orders that require a pre-authorization will not be sent out until approved.

Cost information can be added to the orders.  This information is displayed before the order is completed and can be printed and analyzed by using the EMR Software Reports.  Each order, whether stat or routine, can be analyzed and tracked to make sure the results are received when expected.  The progress of every test is tracked within each patient chart, making “meaningful use” an appropriate function of this EMR module. 

CareTEC  has the skill, knowledge, and experience to help your practice with your EMR software needs. Using Order Entry in conjunction with Practice Partner, we will help you achieve the new-age mantra “meaningful use.”

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Economic Stimulus Provides Incentives for Physicians to adopt EMR

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Financial Incentives

The passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act provides incentives for office-based physicians and other providers to tap into the power of electronic medical records (EMR).

Physicians can qualify under either the Medicare or Medicaid provision. Physicians mudt be office-based to be eligible, and they can not collect incentive payments from both.

In order to qualify for the incentives, physicians must demonstrate “meaningful use” of a certified EMR. Required product capabilities are electronic prescribing, clinical reporting and interoperability, among others. Practice Partner EMR from CareTEC and McKesson has these abilities.

Beginning in 2011, office-based physicians who are “meaningful users” of certified EMRs are entitled to receive up to $44,000 of total Medicare incentive payments over 5 years – from 2011 to 2015. The structure of the maximum incentives physicians can receive is as follows:

  • $15,000 the first year
  • $12,000 the second year
  • $8,000 the third year
  • $4,000 the fourth year
  • $2,000 the fifth year

Additionally, office-based physicians can qualify for a one-time, “early adopter” incentive of $3,000 if they qualify for the program in 2011 or 2012. Incentives are based on the lesser of either 75% of the provider’s Medicare Part B billings or the maximum allowable incentive.

For office-based physicians who do not adopt EMR technology by 2015, Medicare payments will be reduced by:

  • 1% in 2015
  • 2% in 2016
  • 3% in 2017 and beyond

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EMR Software 101 Part 1

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Using Computers Helps Doctor's Efficiency!

EMR 101: Part One

What is an electronic medical record (EMR)?

EMR is software that allows you to create, store, edit and retrieve patient charts on a computer. Electronic medical records software allows a practice to replace its paper charts with electronic charts. This offers tremendous productivity and efficiency benefits to a practice. An EMR replaces the racks of chart folders with a secure and efficient computer.

What benefits come from implementing an EMR?

There are four main benefits to an EMR project.

1. Cost reduction. The productivity and efficiency gains of an EMR translate into lowering the hard dollar cost of running an medical practice.

2. Increased revenue. An EMR can impact the top line of a practice by improving the completeness of documentation and improving the accuracy of coding, increasing the number of services offered, and increasing the number of patient visits per day. For example, Practice Partner from CareTEC and McKesson features built-in age and gender specific reminders for the practice and patients to complete routine procedures, such as mammograms.

3. Improved administrative efficiency. Medical offices with an EMRare dramatically more efficient than traditional paper-based offices. The number of FTEs required to support physicians is 1.5 to 2 FTEs per doctor less than at a practice without an EMR.

4. Improved clinical efficiency, patient care and service. An electronic medical record includes a number of features that allow the clinical side of the practice to operate more efficiently. These improvements include: higher quality documentation (legible, organized, complete), built-in protocols and reminders (including health maintenance), improved medication management (electronic prescribing), and more efficient signing of charts.

Stay tuned for part 2 and more information.

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Best Time To Buy EMR (Electronic Medical Record) Software …Ever!

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Saving Cash in Your Medical Practice has Never Been Easier!

A “Perfect Storm” has arrived for physicians looking to purchase and implement an EMR (electronic medical record). While almost every physician  understands the benefits of an EMR software solution, the reasons for not implementing this beneficial technology have been many. The biggest culprits have always been cost, difficulty of use, and the lack of interoperability between the vast array of electronic medical record software on the market.

The situation has changed dramatically.

Cost: EMR software prices have fallen 50-60% in just the last few years. Even better, the big name EMR companies are now offering financing help to first-time EMR buyers. As an example, McKesson’s Practice Partner EMR from CareTEC can now be purchased at 0% interest for 12 months or a $1,000 cash rebate for the first physician and a $500 cash rebate for each additional physician. Another key element in reducing the cost of EMR was the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). Under ARRA, physicians who demonstrate “meaningful use” of a “certified” EMR could be eligible for up to $64,000 in incentives over six years.

Ease-of-use: Intuitive interfaces have been developed that give the electronic chart the same look and feel as the old paper chart. And, with Practice Partner EMR, physicians can now choose from a variety of input methods including speech recognition, touch-screen templates, keyboard entry and transcription.

Interoperability: McKesson’s Practice Partner EMR from CareTEC provides Connect ™, an interoperability platform for physician practices to more securely exchange information with other practices, patients, hospitals, and payors. This increased visibility to a patient’s chart across care settings enhances patient safety and is a requirement for meeting “meaningful use” criteria under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).  Call us for a free consultation on our EMR software solutions!

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