Congressional Affairs
Feedback offered on Patient Matching, Standards Harmonization and Interoperability to Senate HELP Committee on Draft HIT Bill
Key Takeaway: CHIME offered comments to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) draft health IT legislation last week, commending the committee for tackling many of CHIME’s policy priorities including: patient matching, standards harmonization and reduction in administrative burdens EHRs cause clinicians.
Why It Matters: The byproduct of six hearings, the 68-page draft bill released by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee on January 20th includes directives to increase transparency around the functionality of certified electronic health records, revisit the existing federal advisory committees and enable patients with access to a longitudinal healthcare record in a single location.
CHIME highlighted the below provisions to be those of particular value to our membership:
- Request for a Government Accountability Office (GAO) study on patient matching
- Certification EHRs shall ensure that accurate patient information is provided for the correct patient at the appropriate time
- Creation of a nationwide provider directory
- Reduction in the administrative burden plaguing the provider community, specifically concerning the immaturity and cumbersome nature of reporting and leveraging clinical quality measures
- Prioritization of standards harmonization and adoption as a means to facilitate interoperability
- Enabling patients to have access to a longitudinal healthcare record in a single location using a patient-friendly format
CHIME commended the committee on the inclusion of a request for the GAO to conduct a study on patient matching. In particular, it asks GAO to evaluate current methods for patient matching and to determine if the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology could take steps to improve patient matching. While we would prefer a national identification solution, this important step signifies Congress' recognition and willingness to address the important of linking patients to their healthcare data.
CHIME submitted comments to the committee to inform the development of this draft legislation last July. Comments on the draft legislation were due to the committee on January 29th. Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) announced the committee would review the bill during an executive session on February 9.
CHIME Responds to Senate Chronic Care Working Group, Touts Interoperability and Telehealth as Necessary Components of Future Legislative Efforts
Key Takeaway: In response to the Senate Finance Committee’s Chronic Care Working Group, CHIME emphasized the importance of enabling the creation of longitudinal healthcare records through patient matching and interoperability for both prevention and treatment of chronic illness.
Why It Matters: A bipartisan working group within the Senate Finance Committee set out in 2015 to identify ways to improve care for the nation’s chronically ill patients. In December the group released a Policy Options Document that evaluated a number of proposals ranging from revisions to outdated reimbursement formulas to greater access to telehealth services.
CHIME's response reminded the committee of the importance high-functioning electronic health records and the value of interoperability, citing the need for a national patient identification solution, to facilitate and improve care for the chronically ill and to prevent the broader population from being subject to such conditions by making more data available to clinicians throughout the patient’s lifetime.
CHIME first submitted comments to the workgroup in June of 2015, which called on the committee to foster policies that bolster care coordination and telehealth services in the treatment of patients with chronic conditions.
Federal Affairs
Physician Quality Reporting Deadlines Fast Approaching
Key Takeaway: CMS has made a number of announcements on PQRS
Why it Matters: There are a number of PQRS deadlines and events coming up members should be aware of. In order to help keep you organized we have compiled them below. Please note the maintenance schedule below which CMS has indicated will be down just prior to the submission deadlines.
Deadlines
February 29, 2016:
- EHR Direct or Data Submission Vendor (QRDA I or III) - 1/1/16 - 2/29/16
- Qualified Clinical Data Registries (QCDRs) (QRDA III) - 1/1/16 - 2/29/16
- An Enterprise Identity Management (EIDM) account with the “Submitter Role” is required for these data submission methods. Please see the EIDM System Toolkit for additional information.
- For questions, please contact the QualityNet Help Desk at 1-866-288-8912 or via email at [email protected] from 7:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. CST. Visit the CMS PQRS website for more information.
March 11, 2016
- Group Practice Reporting Option (GPRO) Web Interface
March 31, 2016
- Qualified Registries (Registry XML) - 1/1/16 - 3/31/16
- QCDRs (QCDR XML) - 1/1/16 - 3/31/16
Submission ends at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the end date listed. An Enterprise Identity Management (EIDM) account with the “Submitter Role” is required for these PQRS data submission methods. Please see the EIDM System Toolkit for additional information.
NOTE: CMS has planned maintenance is currently scheduled for the following timeframes:
- 1/22/2016 at 8:00 p.m. ET – 1/25/2016 at 6:00 a.m. ET
- 2/26/2016 at 8:00 p.m. ET – 2/29/2016 at 6:00 a.m. ET
- 3/11/2016 at 8:00 p.m. ET – 3/14/2016 at 6:00 a.m. ET
- 3/16/2016 at 8:00 p.m. ET – 3/21/2016 at 6:00 a.m. ET
Webinars
CMS is hosting two webinars entitled “The Medicare Quality Reporting Programs: What Eligible Providers Need to Know in 2016” on Wednesday, February 10 and Wednesday, February 17, both from 11:30 AM – 1:00 PM EST. These webinars will feature the same presentations on both dates. Topics that will be discussed include:
- Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) Preview
- 2016 Incentive Payments and 2018 Payment Adjustments
- 2016 PQRS Updates
- 2018 Value-based Payment Modifier (VM) Policies
- Physician Compare Updates for 2016
- Meaningful Use of CEHRT in 2016
The webinars will be delivered via WebEx, and instructions on how to join the calls will be given upon registration. To register for the Wednesday, February 10, 2016 go here. To register for the Wednesday, February 17, 2016 go here.
