ICD-10 & Coding

Officials at the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) said Friday they plan to urge the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) for no ICD-10 delay.

With the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services signaling a potential delay for ICD-10 implementation -- and the AMA cheering that prospect -- one physician says the move could adversely impact health reform.

In a move aimed at expanding electronic data interchange (EDI) services in the inpatient space, Quality Systems, Inc. (QSI) will acquire Augusta, Ga.-based ViaTrack Systems.

As if upgrading the nation’s ICD-9 code set for diseases and treatment to ICD-10, with its many thousands more codes, were not enough of a challenge for health information managers at hospitals and health systems across the country, now there’s this: ICD-11 is not far behind.

Less than 10 percent of healthcare providers are more than halfway ready for ICD-10, according to a new report from research firm KLAS. Two that are well on their way to compliance, however, are Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego and St. Louis, Mo.-based SSM Health Care.

ONC Chief Farzad Mostashari, MD, speaking at the Medical Group Management Association's 2011 conference in Las Vegas, tried to appease worried physician leaders by telling them a good EHR will make the path easier to meaningful use, ACOs and other federal healthcare reform measures.

The deadline for HIPAA 5010 - Jan. 1, 2012 - is approaching faster than many providers, payers and vendors would like. And, confusion abounds about what “readiness” means, says the Healthcare Billing & Management Association (HBMA).

Lynne Thomas Gordon, the new CEO of the American Health Information Management Association, spent her first days on the job at the organization's 83rd annual convention in Salt Lake City this week. She spoke with Healthcare IT News about her expectations and the challenges ahead for the 63,000 member organization.

With the ICD-10 transition deadline now just two years away, providers and payers have finally begun tackling the project in earnest, according to a new survey from the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), which shows 85 percent of organizations either planning for or implementing the new codes.

The Board of Directors of the American Health Information Management Association has appointed Lynne Thomas Gordon as its new CEO. She will assume the post on Sept. 29, days before the launch of the organization's annual conference, which begins Oct. 2 in Salt Lake City.