Government & Policy
During the government shutdown, only four of the total 184 on-board staffers at ONC would be retained and charged with handling "orderly phase-down and suspension of operations."
In states with large uninsured populations, marketplace enrollment (or lack of it) could impact doctors, hospitals and insurers for years to come.
Stage 2 of meaningful use will ramp up requirements and the use of patient portals, so a new crop of Web 2.0-savvy solutions are arriving amid estimates of skyrocketing market growth.
As two top leaders prepare to leave health IT's highest government posts, another ONC official -- a family physician, who also spent some time working at an EHR company -- prepares to take the reins.
Both the ONC's national coordinator and principal deputy national coordinator are leaving the agency in October, closing one era and opening another under a new acting ONC chief.
mHealth advocates are giving good early reviews to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's final guidance document on the regulation of mobile medical apps, with one expert calling it "an expansive document that truly seeks to deregulate our nimble and innovative industry, while ensuring patient safety."
Speaking at the Privacy and Security Forum, the man leading HIPAA violation investigations said there is a need for "assertive enforcement" based on clearly defined rules of the road.
When OCR Director Leon Rodriguez took the stage Sept. 23 at the HIMSS Media and Healthcare IT News Privacy and Security Forum, the timing was perfect. With the HIPAA Omnibus Final Rule taking effect on the same day, Rodriguez talked to the increased enforcement to come.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued final guidance for mobile medical application developers, promising limited regulation for most health and wellness apps while applying risk-based standards to diagnostic and quasi-medical device apps.
As mobile medical apps become more and more like medical devices, the FDA is finalizing plans to regulate them similarly.