In this issue of REConnection...
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Join the Rhode Island Practice Transformation Network today!
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The Rhode Island Quality Institute (RIQI) was recently awarded a four-year, $8.3M grant -
Transforming  Clinical Practices Initiative (TCPI) - to provide technical assistance to help equip clinicians in Rhode Island with tools, information, and network support needed to improve quality of care, increase patients' access to information, and spend health care dollars more wisely. As a Practice Transformation Network, RIQI will support 1,500 clinicians to expand their quality improvement capacity, learn from one another, and achieve common goals of improved care, better health, and reduced cost. The TCPI program is open to all providers, including specialists, as long as they are not already participating in a federal Shared Savings Program (MSSP, MAPCP, CPCI, Pioneer ACO), or with another Practice Transformation Network. If you are interested in learning more about receiving free service and support through the TCPI initiative, please email us at Info@riqi.org and we will contact you shortly.
For additional information:
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CMS Extends the Attestation Deadline for the EHR Incentive Programs to March 11, 2016
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) extended the attestation deadline for the Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Programs to Friday, March 11, 2016 at 11:59 p.m. ET, from the original deadline of Monday, February 29.
Eligible professionals, eligible hospitals, and critical access hospitals (CAHs) participating in the Medicare EHR Incentive Program can attest through the CMS Registration and Attestation System. Providers participating in the Medicaid EHR Incentive Program should refer to their respective states for attestation information and deadlines. Certain Medicaid eligible professionals may use the Registration and Attestation System as an alternate attestation method to avoid the Medicare payment adjustment ( 80 FR 62900 through 62901). To attest to the EHR Incentive Programs in 2015:
- Eligible Professionals may select an EHR reporting period of any continuous 90 days from January 1, 2015 (the start of the 2015 calendar year) through December 31, 2015.
- Eligible Hospitals/CAHs may select an EHR reporting period of any continuous 90 days from October 1, 2014 (the start of the federal fiscal year) through December 31, 2015.
Attestation Resources
For assistance with attestation, please review the following CMS resources:
For More Information
For attestation questions, please contact the EHR Information Center Help Desk at (888) 734-6433/ TTY: (888) 734-6563. The hours of operation are Monday to Friday between 7:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. EST.
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From the Executive Office of Health and Human Services --
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Deadline to submit AIU Medicaid EHR Incentive application is March 30
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Spring is right around the corner and so is the deadline to submit a first year AIU Medicaid EHR Incentive application for program year 2015!
Please note that March 30, 2016 is the deadline to submit first year 2015 AIU Medicaid EHR Incentive application to Rhode Island Medicaid. Providers who have Adopted, Implemented or Upgraded their certified electronic health record system may be eligible for a 2015 RI Medicaid EHR Incentive. After this deadline we will no longer accept 2015 AIU applications.
Other Program Considerations
- If you are attesting for meaningful use for 2015, you will need to wait to attest until we upgrade our MAPIR system. A 60-day deadline for 2015 meaningful use attestations will be established after the upgrade to MAPIR is completed.
- 2016 is the last year to participate in the RI Medicaid EHR Incentive program. The program will not accept new eligible providers or eligible hospitals after 2016. Contact the Rhode Island Quality Institute via email or by phone at 888-858-4815 if you need assistance to see if providers in your practice are eligible.
If you have any further questions, feel free to contact us at ohhs.ehrincentive@ohhs.ri.gov. Also, we'd appreciate it if you pass this information along to other provider practices who may benefit from knowing this program information.
Rhode Island Medicaid EHR Incentive Program
Executive Office of Health and Human Services
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CurrentCare enrollment and utilization is way up, thanks to you!
Check out the CurrentCare Superlatives below to see who topped the charts for Patient Enrollment, CurrentCare Viewer Utilization and the use of CurrentCare in EHRs!
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Direct from the ONC...
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Help us stop information blocking
The Department of Health and Human Services is working to identify and stop instances of information blocking. You can help by reporting complaints about information blocking to us here: healthITcomplaints@HHS.gov.
What is information blocking? Information blocking (or data blocking) occurs when individuals or entities - such as healthcare providers or IT vendors - knowingly and unreasonably interfere with the exchange or use of electronic health information.1 Information blocking is a serious problem because it can prevent timely access to information needed to manage patients' health conditions and coordinate their care. Further, it can prevent information from being used to improve health, make care more affordable, and research new treatments and cures.
Identifying information blocking: Information blocking can happen as a result of overt actions or policies that prevent electronic health information from being appropriately shared or used for authorized purposes. It can also occur in more subtle ways, such as through contract terms, organizational policies, or technical limitations that discourage or make it unnecessarily costly or burdensome to share and use information. Not all actions that impede the exchange or use of electronic health information constitute information blocking: sometimes the "blocking" may be necessary to protect patient safety, privacy, or other compelling interests.
Some examples of conduct that may raise information blocking concerns include:
- Fees are imposed that make exchanging electronic health information cost prohibitive.
- An organization's policies or contractual arrangements prevent sharing or limit how information is shared with patients or their healthcare providers.
- The HIPAA Privacy Rule is inappropriately cited as a reason not to share information.
- Healthcare providers or IT vendors limit or discourage sharing information with other providers or with users of other IT systems.
- Technology is designed or implemented in non-standard ways that lessen the ability to exchange and use information with other IT systems, services, or applications that follow nationally recognized standards.
- Patients or healthcare providers become "locked in" to a particular technology or healthcare network because their electronic health information is not portable.
Help us stop information blocking and move toward nationwide interoperability by reporting information blocking here or via email at healthITcomplaints@hhs.gov.
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Rhode Island Medical Society Journal: March Edition
RIQI is pleased to share the latest edition of the Rhode Island Medical Journal, the monthly publication of the Rhode Island Medical Society.
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The RI Regional Extension Center (RI REC) is a service of the Rhode Island Quality Institute, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality, safety, and value of health care in Rhode Island. To learn more, visit www.TransformYourPracticeRI.org.
RI REC and its services and materials are made possible through a grant from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology with US Department of Health and Human Services support.
REConnection is intended to provide the Rhode Island healthcare community and other interested stakeholders with timely news and information about RI REC's programs, resources, and educational activities that support the adoption of health information technology.
To learn more about participating in RI REC's Health IT Adoption, HIE/CurrentCare, and Direct Adoption Programs, please call 888-858-4815 or write to rirec@riqi.org.
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