Report: Healthcare Industry Not Ready for ICD-10 Transition

The Reston, Va.-based Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange (WEDI), a non-profit aimed at improving healthcare through health information exchange (HIE), recently released a report that says the healthcare industry is not making the amount of progress that is needed for a smooth transition to ICD-10 in October 2014. 

The readiness assessment from WEDI comes from a survey of 1,000 providers, health plans and vendors during February 2013. According to WEDI, based on the responses, there is evidence the industry falling behind with ICD-10 compliance based on recommended timelines from North Carolina Healthcare Information and Communications Alliance (NCHICA)/WEDI.

For example, almost half of the health plans expect to begin external testing by the end of this year, whereas in last year’s survey they had expected to begin at the beginning of this year. In addition, more than half of the providers responded that they did not know when testing would occur and over two-fifths of provider respondents indicated they did not know when they complete their impact assessment and business changes.

“The survey results show that projected timeframes for testing have shifted and many organizations will not begin this task until 2014,” Jim Daley, WEDI Chairman, said in a statement. “Because of the magnitude of ICD-10 it is critical that organizations complete their remediation efforts as quickly as possible in order to allow adequate time for testing.”