One of the ways that HITECH Answers is different from other media sites is the sense of community. The thought leaders in our community are good about sharing their thoughts on the issues of today. We publish at least eleven guest posts a week now, on our three sites. In case you missed some, here are the top ten read and shared guest posts in the month of December. You can also read previous month’s Top Ten Lists. Thank you for contributing and reading.
Stop the Insanity: Physician’s Information Security Practices Must Change to End Cyberattacks
By David Holtzman, JD, CIPP/G, VP, Compliance Strategies, CynergisTek
Twitter: @cynergistek
Twitter: @HITPrivacy
New data reporting on the incidence of malware and ransomware incidents in healthcare find that the majority of physicians are experiencing cyberattacks while many fear they are in the line of fire for future attacks. At the same time, most providers believe their practices are complying with the HIPAA security requirements. These surveys of physician sentiment stand in stark juxtaposition to the results of HIPAA compliance audits conducted over five years that found very few providers have adequate information security management practices to safeguard their data. Continue reading on HITECHAnswers.net…
7 Tips for Secure BYOD in Healthcare
By Win Reis, Director, Strategic Partnerships and Solutions, Vocera
Twitter: @VoceraComm
If endpoint security – especially for smartphones – wasn’t a top-of-mind issue for healthcare IT leaders before, it certainly is now. I’ve spoken with numerous customers who struggle with it and are asking for guidance. At HIMSS this year I attended the CHIME CIO Forum which included a presentation by Kevin Mitnick, a former black hat hacker. He went to prison for cybersecurity crimes several years ago and now runs a cybersecurity consulting firm that boasts a 100% success rate in penetrating his clients’ networks. The main way he is able to infiltrate his clients’ networks is through what is called “social engineering.” Continue reading on HITECHAnswers.net…
Tackling the Clinical Process Crisis
By Brita Hansen, MD, Chief Medical Officer, LogicStream Health
Twitter: @Logic_Stream
The era of modern medicine has produced groundbreaking discoveries that have helped save countless lives. But despite their value to patient care, these discoveries also place a heavy burden on providers and their organizations. A study published in 2011 estimated that as of 2010, medical knowledge began doubling every 3.5 years. By 2020, the doubling rate is expected to drop to approximately 73 days. This rapid rate of change has a significant influence on clinical processes. Today’s best practices may be outdated tomorrow. Continue reading on HIEAnswers.net…
MACRA – MIPS: OIG Waves the Yellow Flag
By Jim Tate, EMR Advocate
Twitter: @JimTate
The Office of Inspector General released the Followup Review: CMS’s Management of The Quality Payment Program (QPP). In 2016 OIG published their initial assessment of the management of the QPP by CMS. This secondary release was to access progress made since that time. You can follow the hyperlink and read the entire report but here is what you need to know. “OIG has identified two vulnerabilities that are critical for CMS to address in 2018 because of their potential impact on the program’s success”. The OIG is waving a yellow flag based on two issues. Let’s check them out: Continue reading on HITECHAnswers.net…
Tips for Securing ePHI on Mobile Devices
By Art Gross, President and CEO, HIPAA Secure Now!
Twitter: @HIPAASecureNow
While mobile devices play a major role in how we stay connected to the world in our personal lives, they are also becoming increasingly popular in our work environments. Not only are mobile devices such as smartphones, tablets and laptops convenient in the workplace, but they can also help increase productivity. In its October cybersecurity newsletter, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) discusses the pros and cons of utilizing mobile devices in the work place and provides tips on how to best protect these devices when accessing ePHI. Continue reading on HITECHAnswers.net…
MIPS 2018: Eligibility, Payment Adjustments, and Key Changes
By Anshu Jindal, COO, MyMipsScore
Twitter: @MyMipsScore
The MACRA 2018 Final Rule for year-two of Quality Payment Program was released recently. Some changes were retained from the 2018 proposed rule, some were deferred till 2019, while in some cases the approach outlined in the 2017 Final Rule was adopted instead. That being said, let us reiterate the eligibility criteria, go through some new bonus opportunities, exception criteria, and take a look at how the changes in Performance Thresholds impact the payment adjustments in 2020 based on performance in 2018. Continue reading on RCMAnswers.net…
2018 Healthcare Predictions: 10 Trends to Watch in Imaging
By Morris Panner, CEO of Ambra Health
Twitter: @ambrahealth
Twitter: @mpanner
2018 will bring an advanced pace to the digital transformation of the healthcare industry. Changing consumer preferences, provider consolidation, and tech titans like Apple, Amazon and Microsoft moving into the space will be major market forces fundamentally changing the way patient care is managed and delivered. While the regulatory uncertainty for payers, providers, and pharmaceuticals remains in 2018, value-based care will continue to be a top priority. Will 2018 be the year where we’re diagnosed by a virtual AI doctor from our smartphones? Probably not, but here’s what we think will unfold in the year ahead. Continue reading on HIEAnswers.net…
2018 Predictions from Healthcare Leaders Across the Country
From the Hayes Healthcare Leaders Blog Series (@HayesManagement)
There’s a familiar quote that says, “Never make predictions, especially about the future.” But ‘tis the season for doing just that so we asked some of the leading healthcare experts to give us their predictions for the industry in 2018. Their outlook on the coming year cover a wide range of issues including technological innovation, EHRs, cloud services, cybersecurity, healthcare costs, legacy data management and the Internet of Things. Continue reading on HITECHAnswers.net…
I Spy, A HIPAA Breach?: Video Recording in Healthcare
By Matt Fisher, Attorney and chair of the Health Law Group at Mirick, O’Connell, DeMallie & Lougee, LLP.
Twitter: @matt_r_fisher
Video recording has been as simple as turning on a smartphone and videos appear on the internet all of the time. Police body cameras are another growing area where a video is taken every day and in all sorts of locations. When those videos record activities in a hospital, physician’s office, or other healthcare settings, what is permissible? It is questions being raised with increasing frequency and one that is challenging to organizations. Like so many regulatory requirements or conundrums, the answer is not so clear. Continue reading on HITECHAnswers.net…
MIPS 2018: The Reality of Virtual Groups
By Dr. Pawan Jindal, Founder, MyMipsScore
Twitter: @MyMipsScore
There are generally two ways to participate in MIPS in 2017: as an Individual or as a Group. Beginning 2018, there will be a third option available to individuals and small groups called the “Virtual Group”. The definition of Virtual Group comes from the definition of ‘virtual’ and ‘group’. Virtual means near or implied and group refers to the MIPS definition of group. So, Virtual Groups would generally be treated under MIPS as groups with few variations. Continue reading on RCMAnswers.net…
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