Public Health Reporting Requirements Satisfied with CA-Certified MEDHOST YourCareLink
California hospitals struggling to meet the federal government’s public health reporting requirements, in advance of a looming deadline, have finally caught a break. The California Department of Health’s decision to authorize healthcare IT firm MEDHOST as having a Health Information Exchange (HIE) gives the Golden State’s hospitals a powerful new ally for public health data reporting, as mandated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Meaningful Use Stage 2 requirements.
The data that must be submitted on an ongoing basis – syndromic surveillance, lab results and immunization – can now flow from hospitals easily and with minimal hospital IT staff involvement thanks to the MEDHOST YourCareLink service. The service is a time-saving solution for hospitals trying to attain the federal financial incentives that come with meeting Meaningful Use Stage 2 Core Objectives 13, 14 and 15. Another option for California hospitals is to manually set up and monitor ongoing data transmissions to the state, a burdensome process that requires a significant facility investment in interface software and expertise.
“We’ve noticed significant organizational investment in meeting computerized provider order entry and summary of care Meaningful Use Stage 2 core objectives. As a result, we have worked with many hospitals that have deprioritized public health reporting without a strong understanding of the extensive time and expertise required for interface connectivity, testing and ongoing support. MEDHOST Customers outside California have had the opportunity to engage YourCareLink services to relieve this connectivity burden and successfully meet the Meaningful Use Stage 2 public health reporting requirements,” said Nathan Smith, senior manager of MEDHOST YourCareLink. “Because Meaningful Use incentives are an all-or-nothing proposition, many California hospitals may fail to comply with CMS requirements ahead of the fast-approaching public health reporting deadline, and as a result, they could face stiff reimbursement penalties. MEDHOST YourCareLink will help hospitals avoid all of that.”
As a turn-key service, MEDHOST YourCareLink frees hospital IT staff to focus on clinical-facing projects. MEDHOST actively monitors the facility-to-state data feed, and YourCareLink proactively identifies and corrects data transmission errors. YourCareLink is a hosted solution and provides ongoing submission reporting in the event of a CMS audit.
YourCareLink is part of MEDHOST Professional Services, which includes a wide portfolio of offerings that hospitals can customize according to their needs. This set of services is designed to help hospitals maximize enterprise efficiency, reduce costs and meet regulatory requirements such as Meaningful Use. In addition to YourCareLink, MEDHOST Professional Services are comprised of YourCareCommunity, Outsourced Services and Professional Consulting.
About MEDHOST
MEDHOST, Inc. is a provider of market-leading enterprise, departmental and healthcare engagement solutions to approximately 1,000 healthcare facilities. Our healthcare management system includes intuitive, easy-to-use and SaaS-enabled solutions complemented by a robust suite of managed hosting, outsourcing and consulting services that are changing how clinicians and hospital leaders work and communicate, while generating notable operational, patient flow, care and revenue improvements. MEDHOST delivers value by enabling hospitals of all types and all sizes to better manage care and the business of healthcare while meeting evolving regulatory requirements.