Health Information Exchange: From Princeton to Washington, DC Conferences

July 22, 2010: HIE Day in Two Cities
WASHINGTON, DC (July 22, 2010) — With more than 400 delegates to the National HIE Summit from 38 states meeting in the nation’s capital today and over 125 delegates to the New Jersey HIE Summit & Expo meeting in Princeton, NJ, you can see federalism at work in Health IT.

In the Washington, DC Conference produced by the national eHealth Initiative, and hosted at the Omni Shoreham Hotel, the the topics of the day are:
Getting Started: What to do first?
Sustainability: What works?
Getting to Meaningful Use
Inter-State Coordination
Understanding and Connecting to the NHIN
Engaging Consumers in Health Information Exchange
Measuring Your Progress: What Really Matters?
Beyond Implementation: Planning for Privacy

The Washington session ends with a networking reception.

The Princeton, NJ Conference produced by NJTC (New Jersey Technology Council), and hosted at the New Jersey Hospital Association Conference Center, will cover:
NJ Health IT Extension Center (NJ-HITEC)
Colleen Woods, newly appointed Statewide Health IT Coordinator for New Jersey, will make a presentation.
Components of a Successful HIE
                 Developing a Sustainable Business Model for HIE
                 Managing an Effective Procurement Process
                 Engaging and Supporting Physicians in the Adoption of Heath IT
                 Building Public Private Sector Partnerships for HIE
HIPAA HITECH – Audits, Breaches & Fines
Navigating the Winding Road
                 Know Your Obligations
                 Identify and Address Gaps
                 Security Rule Compliance
                 Test Your Program and Consider Lessons Learned now Your Obligations
HIE Privacy, Security and Compliance
                 Understanding Meaningful Use Requirements
                 Understanding and Applying the New Standards Requirements
                 Developing and Implementing Strong Privacy and Security Policies
                 Advancing Administrative Simplification Efforts

Technologies that Transform Patient Care    

The Princeton session ends with an ice cream reception.   

Personal Notes
In Princeton, Vikas Khosla, President and CEO of  BluePrint Healthcare IT (and my boss), is participating in a panel discussion and focusing on  ”Developing and Implementing Strong Privacy and Security Policies” and joining two of my colleagues Gregory Michaels, Director, Security and Compliance; and Pam Kaur, Client Services Team Lead, who will be attending and working BluePrint’s exhibit table.

In Washington, as VP, Strategic Development and Public Policy, for BluePrint (and as e-Healthcare Marketing blogger), I will be listening, learning, meeting, and greeting state HIE coordinators and Health IT folks from across the country. And we’ll compare notes when the day is done.

BluePrint also issued a press release July 21, 2010 announcing two products that support secure health information exchange by lowering barriers to HIE interoperability and promoting patient confidence: HIE Secure and EMR Secure.

While e-Healthcare Marketing independently collects and reports information on Health IT including EHRs, ONC, CMS, and public policy, a view of the blogger and his business colleagues seemed worth noting today. Thank you for reading.
Mike Squires

NJ Health IT Coordinator Colleen Woods Appointed

Governor Christie Taps Colleen Woods as Statewide Health Information Technology Coordinator
Press Release from NJ Governor Christies’ office.
Trenton, NJ – (July 2, 2010) Governor Chris Christie today announced the appointment of Colleen M. Woods as New Jersey’s Statewide Health Information Technology (HIT) Coordinator.  Ms. Woods will be responsible for working with all state departments and agencies, the healthcare provider community, and other key stakeholders, to implement and facilitate the HIT movement across the State and in accordance with nationally recognized Federal standards. 

“New Jersey has been at the forefront of promoting the meaningful use of heath information technology and exchange to help improve health care outcomes for our citizens,” said Governor Christie. “I am pleased to have an individual with Colleen’s caliber of expertise to spearhead New Jersey’s health information technology efforts.”

Ms. Woods brings over 20 years of technology experience working for the State of New Jersey to the position.  She most recently served as the Chief Information Officer for the New Jersey Department of Human Services and recently received the IT Hero award from the New Jersey Mental Health Association.  She has a Masters degree from Rutgers University. 

“It is an exciting time in the healthcare community, and I look forward to working with all of the stakeholders, both in the state and nationally, to improve the delivery and quality of healthcare,” Ms. Woods said.

Nationally, health information technology is playing a critical role in achieving improved healthcare by reducing duplicative or unnecessary testing; strengthening disease management efforts; improving overall care coordination and reducing costs.

Recently, New Jersey was awarded $5 million in federal funds to support the State’s Medicaid HIT Planning (SMHP) process that will implement an electronic health record (EHR) incentive program. In addition, the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) was awarded a federal grant of over $23 million to become a state designated Regional Extension Center (REC) to further promote HIT related training, innovation lab, awareness and education of the use of EHR technology. 

New Jersey also is receiving $11.4 million in federal funds over the next four years to fund electronic health records projects that will create four regional Health Information Exchanges (HIEs) that will share information among health care providers around the state. 

The Statewide Health Information Technology Coordinator will report directly to the Governor’s Office.
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Daily message from New Jersey Hospital Association on Friday, July 9, 2010.
Gov. Christie Appoints Woods to Lead Health Information Technology Initiative
Gov. Chris Christie recently appointed Colleen Woods to the position of Health Information Technology (HIT) Coordinator.

Woods will be responsible for working with all state departments and agencies, the healthcare provider community and all other industry stakeholders to implement and facilitate HIT adoption across the state and in accordance with nationally recognized federal standards.

Woods has over 20 years of HIT experience and previously served as chief information officer for the state Department of Human Services. Woods also has been a member of the NJ HIT Commission since its inception and served on the New Jersey State Medicaid HIT Project Steering Committee.

“For many years Colleen has provided a tremendous amount of technical leadership and served as a tireless advocate for the adoption of HIT. NJHA applauds Gov. Christie’s appointment, and we look forward to supporting her in this important work,” said Joe Carr, NJHA’s chief information officer.
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Colleen Woods, newly appointed NJ State HIT Coordinatorm will share her vision of NJ’s plan to obtain the maximum stimulus dollars for HIT.

Woods added to NJTC HIE Summit & Expo Agenda
July 22 at NJHA, Princeton

CMS Awards Add’l $9.1 Mil for Medicaid Health IT to New Jersey, Louisiana, Maryland, and Minnesota

Four New CMS Awards for Health IT Programs for Medicaid
Ups  Total to $67.6 Mil for 41 State/Territory Medicaid Agencies
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) announced its four latest federal matching fund awards on May 11, 2010 as part of the CMS Electronic Health Records Incentive Program with $9.2 million in this round divided between the Medicaid agencies for New Jersey with $4.93 million, Louisiana with $1.85 million, Maryland with $1.37 million, and Minnesota with $1.04 million.

Among the 41 State/Territory Medicaid agencies, New Jersey captured the second largest award, with New York maintaining its top spot at $5.91 million. The midpoint for award amounts remains about $1.4 million per agency. See complete chart below with states, amounts, and dates announced.

The press release for each state award continues to say “The Recovery Act provides a 90 percent federal match for state planning activities to administer the incentive payments to Medicaid providers, to ensure their proper payments through audits and to participate in statewide efforts to promote interoperability and meaningful use of EHR technology statewide and, eventually, across the nation.”

All award announcements  (May 11, 2010 and prior) can be viewed via a search of CMS press releases that this link launches. 

CMS Matching Funds for EHRs  

State Amount Date
Alabama $269,000 2/26/2010
Alaska $900,000 1/21/2010
Arizona $2,890,000 2/26/2010
Arkansas $815,000 2/26/2010
California $2,480,000 12/9/2009
Colorado $798,000 3/24/2010
Florida $1,690,000 2/26/2010
Georgia $3,170,000 12/9/2009
Idaho $142,000 12/9/2009
Illinois $2,180,000 2/26/2010
Iowa $1,160,000 11/23/2009
Kansas $1,700,000 2/26/2010
Kentucky $2,600,000 1/21/2010
Louisiana $1,850,000 5/11/2010
Maine $1,400,000 2/26/2010
Maryland $1,370,000 5/11/2010
Michigan $1,520,000 2/26/2010
Minnesota $1,040,000 5/11/2010
Mississippi $1,470,000 3/24/2010
Missouri $1,530,000 4/26/2010
Montana $239,000 12/9/2009
Nebraska $894,000 2/26/2010
Nevada $1,050,000 3/24/2010
New Jersey $4,930,000 5/11/2010
New Mexico $405,000 4/26/2010
New York $5,910,000 12/9/2009
North Carolina $2,290,000 3/24/2010
Oklahoma $587,000 2/26/2010
Oregon $3,530,000 4/26/2010
Pennsylvania $1,420,000 1/4/2010
Puerto Rico $1,800,000 4/26/2010
South Carolina $1,480,000 1/21/2010
Tennessee $2,700,000 1/4/2010
Texas $3,860,000 12/9/2009
US Virgin Islands $232,000 12/9/2009
Utah $396,000 3/24/2010
Vermont $294,000 2/26/2010
Virginia $1,660,000 2/26/2010
Washington $967,000 4/26/2010
Wisconsin $1,370,000 1/21/2010
Wyoming $596,000 3/24/2010
TOTAL $67,584,000  

For additional background information on CMS Awards, see these previous posts on e-Healthcare Marketing.
March 29, 2010: “CMS Awards Total of $50 Million to 32 State Medicaid EHR Programs”
April 26, 2010: “CMS Awards Add’l $8.2 mil for Medicaid Health IT to Oregon, Puerto Rico, New Mexico, Washington, and Missouri”

NJ Open Forum on Privacy & Security in HIE: Health IT Commission Policy Cmte — Apr 12, 2010

Open Forum on Privacy & Security in Health Information Exchange:
New Jersey Health IT Commission Policy Committee

April 12, 2010, 1-4 p.m.

Location: New Jersey Hospital Association
760 Alexander Road
Princeton, NJ 08543-0001

AGENDA (pdf version)
1. Opening remarks: Al Gutierrez and Helen Oscislawski
2. Discussion of Checklist of Outstanding Privacy & Security Issues
          i. Review of law and best practices in HIE (NJ Administrative Code;   Markle/HISPC/ONC/IHE/AHIMA)
        ii. Recommendations for each item on ‘Checklist’
       iii. Development of recommended language for common forms (Consent, Notice of Privacy Practices, Trust Agreement, etc)
3. Open discussion of Current Challenges in HIE
         i. What are the remaining hurdles to exchanging data?
        ii. What are the remaining hurdles to establishing an operational exchange?
4. Wrap-up: Future Items to be Addressed by Health IT Commission, State

NJ Health IT Commission

NJIT Receives More than $23 Mil for NJ Regional Extension Center: NJ-HITEC

NJIT Receives More than $23 Million in Recovery Funds
for Regional Extension Center To Facilitate Use of  EHRS

NJ Health Information Technology Extension Center (NJ-HITEC)
NJ-HITEC Web Site:        www.njhitec.org
NEWARK, Apr 7 2010 Press Release from NJIT produced in full.

Donald H. Sebastian, PhD

Donald H. Sebastian, PhD

The White House announced yesterday that New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) will receive more than $23 million of the $2 billion allocated by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to achieve widespread meaningful use of health IT and facilitate use of an electronic health record (EHR) by every person by the year 2014.  The newborn New Jersey Health Information Technology Extension Center (NJ-HITEC) initiative proposed by NJIT Senior Vice President for Research and Development Donald H. Sebastian, PhD, principal investigator, will assist New Jersey’s health care providers in their significant use of health information technology through outreach, consultation and user support for the state’s primary care providers serving at-risk population centers.  

“This federal program shows that health care reform is about more than just insurance.  We can drive down costs and improve care through the re-engineering of medical practice. Information technology is a critical enabler,” said Sebastian. “Roughly 80 percent of the state’s physicians serve at-risk population areas–the large urban regions of Newark, Trenton, Camden and Atlantic City– and these providers will be the primary receivers of grant-assisted services supporting them to achieve meaningful use of electronic healthcare record systems.”

William O’Byrne, State Coordinator, Office of Health Information Technology Development, State of New Jersey pointed out that, “NJ-HITEC staff will offer client practices one-stop shopping, coordinating the delivery of services and technology from public and private sources. This brokered service-organizational model, based upon NJIT’s decades of experience in managing statewide extension efforts with high impact, will leverage existing public and private-sector partners and eliminate the need for large administrative overhead.”  New Jersey’s 19 community colleges will act as exclusive partners for the delivery of outreach and awareness training throughout the state.  The NJIT Division of Continuing and Professional Education will complement these efforts.

Director of the New Jersey Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services, John R. Guhl added, “I am pleased to see that New Jersey’s university of science and technology has stepped forward to lead this effort. NJIT has a solid track record in deploying an array of outreach and extension programs and also has the technical expertise to bring fresh ideas and emerging technologies to the field with objectivity and credibility.”

Thomas M. Bartiromo, vice president and chief technology officer at Saint Barnabas Health Care System, indicated that,  “Our whole delivery approach will take advantage of the strong partnerships formed with New Jersey Hospital Association, Health Information Management and Systems Society, Medical Society of New Jersey, NJ Community College Consortium for Workforce & Economic Development, New Jersey Department of Health and the New Jersey Human Services– without which this new Center would not be realized.  The HIT Extension Center award to NJIT is fantastic news for New Jersey, its patients, hospitals and physician community.  This will provide much-needed assistance for physician practices to further their adoption of Health Information Technology, achieve meaningful use of an EHR and participate in Health Information Exchange/s. This also provides an opportunity for the planned NJ Health Care Innovation Center to work closely with the HITEC to prioritize areas for system solutions and innovations to and from the field.  This platform will help create the conditions for continuous HIT Innovation to occur in New Jersey.” 

Tom Gregorio, senior vice president administration and chief information officer, Meadowlands Hospital and executive director of Health-e-cITi NJ, a regional healthcare information exchange  (HIE), explained “this award to NJIT represents the final step in aligning the HIE efforts in the state with the federal requirements providing physicians with the capabilities to become meaningful users of Healthcare Information Technology.  Health-e-cITi NJ is proud to have contributed to the efforts and is proud to be a part of the collaboration with NJIT.   I would also like to thank Don Sebastian for his relentless leadership and vision in making sure that NJIT and the state is in front of the line when it comes to healthcare innovation technology.  His vision for the University and the State are sure to place the program among the models for the country.”

“The New Jersey Chapter of HIMSS is excited at the potential for adoption of transformational technology by our physicians that NJ-HITEC, a Regional Extension Center, will help spearhead,” said Richard S. Temple, president, New Jersey Chapter of HIMSS.

NJIT President Robert A. Altenkirch, PhD, extolled the collaboration. “Every member of the partnership that secured this grant is to be congratulated for their dedication and tireless efforts. Their success is a substantial contribution to more effective and economical delivery of health care and, most importantly, to better health for the people of New Jersey,” he said. 

NJIT, New Jersey’s science and technology university, at the edge in knowledge, enrolls more than 8,400 students in bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in 92 degree programs offered by six colleges: Newark College of Engineering, College of Architecture and Design, College of Science and Liberal Arts, School of Management, Albert Dorman Honors College and College of Computing Sciences. NJIT is renowned for expertise in architecture, applied mathematics, wireless communications and networking, solar physics, advanced engineered particulate materials, nanotechnology, neural engineering and e-learning. In 2009, Princeton Review named NJIT among the nation’s top 25 campuses for technology and among the top 150 for best value. U.S. News & World Report’s 2008 Annual Guide to America’s Best Colleges ranked NJIT in the top tier of national research universities.
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NJ-HITEC Web Site:        www.njhitec.org

NJ Awarded $11.4 Million Grant for Electronic Health Records

NJ Awarded $11.4 Million Grant for Electronic Health Records
March 25, 2010 Press Release from Poonam Alaigh, MD, MSHCPM, FACP, Acting Commissioner, NJ Dept of Health and Senior Services: 
 ”New Jersey will receive $11.4 million in federal funds over the next four years to fund electronic health records projects that will allow hospitals, doctors and health insurance companies to share electronic medical records in real time over secure networks.

(Update: Dr. Alaigh was sworn in as commissioner on March 26, 2010.)

“The state will work with the health care industry to create four regional Health Information Exchanges (HIEs) that will share information such as lab results and medication histories among health care providers around the state. HIEs hold the promise of improving health care quality and efficiency by eliminating duplicative testing, avoiding dangerous medication interactions and providing information about patient histories with other facilities that will help physicians improve care.

“The funding, awarded under the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, moves the state closer to the national goal of achieving interoperable electronic health records transfer capability by the year 2014.

“The Department of Health and Senior Services led a multi-departmental effort to apply for the grant and to jointly submit a state plan for Health Information Technology.

“Health and Senior Services Commissioner Dr. Poonam Alaigh and Banking and Insurance Commissioner Tom Considine explained that the goal of the initiative is to increase patient safety and reduce medical costs. The Department of Human Services, which runs the state’s Medicaid program, is also involved in the initiative.

“‘The real-time exchange of clinical data among health-care providers represents a central pillar of health-care reform,’ said Dr. Alaigh. ‘If we’re going to get serious about reducing costs, if we’re going to get serious about managing patients with chronic disease, and if we’re going to get serious about coordinating care, then accurate and robust data at the point of care is fundamental.’

“Commissioner Considine said, ‘These infrastructure projects are important building blocks in creating a network-wide electronic health records system,’ said Commissioner Considine. ‘These projects will help lead the way toward better and safer medical care for the people of New Jersey.’

“‘When we began this effort more than a decade ago, we knew it would be an ambitious undertaking,’ said Commissioner Considine. ‘An electronic health records system translates to important cost savings for hundreds of thousands of people.’

“When these projects are completed by March 2014, treatments including diagnostic tests such as legally required lead screening for children will be tracked, preventing unnecessary duplicate services. Another benefit of electronic health records is that any possible adverse reactions, such as drug allergies, would be known by the treating medical staff.

“New Jersey’s work on health information technology began in 1999 with the establishment of the Office for Electronic Health Information Technology (e-HIT). As required by ARRA, all states must develop a health IT network that registers every citizen by the end of 2015.

“The grant award marks the culmination of a process among several departments of state government and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. The Statewide Health Information Exchange Cooperative Agreement Program—offered by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology—required states to submit state Health IT Plans that addressed several issues, including privacy, security, and technical infrastructure.

“The four exchanges that received funding have statewide coverage and were selected last fall through a competitive Request for Application process.”

New Jersey Health IT Commission Agenda–March 11, 2010

NJHIT Commission Meeting Agenda
Thursday, March 11, 2010

3 p.m.-5:00 p.m.
Dept. of Health and Senior Services,
Health and Agriculture Building, 1st Floor Auditorium,
369 South Warren Street, Trenton, NJ 08625.  
Page: http://www.state.nj.us/health/bc/hitc.shtml

AGENDA (pdf version)
Chair and moderator: Kennedy Ganti, MD
Topics
1. Overview of Meeting–Kennedy Ganti, MD  5 mins
2. Status Report on Response to ONC Grant  15 mins
–Jed Seltzer
–William O’Byrne
3. Status Report on four HIEs 15 mins
–Representatives from Health-e-Citi, Northern & Central HIE Collaborative, South Jersey HIE, and Camden Coalition
4.  Report-outs from Each Committee 15 mins
–Stevie Davidson
–Kennedy Ganti, MD
–Al Gutierrez
5. Medicaid IT Planning Update 15 mins
–Colleen Woods
–Michele Romeo
6. Introduce Framework and Timeline for Interim Report 15 mins
–Kennedy Ganti, MD
7. Lessons Learned from Government Health IT Conference & HIE Summit 10 mins
–Kennedy Ganti, MD
–Jed Seltzer
–Stevie Davidson
–Helen Oscislawski
8. Collaborations with Professional Societies, Outside Groups 10 mins
–Kennedy Ganti, MD
–Jed Seltzer
9. Public Comment Period/OPMA
General public present

Chilmark Research: State HIEs Analysis

Chilmark Research: The Great Land Grab of 2010 or the Play for State HIEs
Matt Guldin of Chilmark Research, posted a great review of the status of HIE applicants to the ONC’s State HIE Cooperation Agreements on February 25, 2010.
Guldin is leading  HIE research for soon-to-be released Chilmark HIE report. Guldin reported that 16 states were not yet rewarded funds:  Alaska, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Texas. See earlier post on e-Healthcare Marketing for those states that did receive funds.

According to Chilmark, most states awarded funds fell into a category of states with existing strategic andor operational plans that are not consistent with ONC criteria, a smaller number of states had no existing strategic plan and four states had existing strategic and/or operational plans that are consistent with ONC criteria. Additional awards are expected by April according to several reports.

Chilmark post goes onto to discuss impact on HIE vendors, confusion regarding HIE solutions, and concludes that there is a lack of clear vendor leadership in HIE market.

NJ Health IT Commisson Feb 25 Meeting Cancelled: Brief Conference Call

New Jersey Health IT Commission Feb 25 Meeting Cancelled
Brief Conference Call Planned
“Because of the forecasted snowstorm, the February (25) meeting has been cancelled. We will hold a brief conference call at 3 p.m. at 1-877-214-6371 passcode 953415. The next Health IT Commission meeting will be March 11.”

In a neighboring state, the PAeHI (Pennsylvania e-Health Initiative) All-Committee meeting scheduled for Harrisburg, PA on Wed, Feb 24, 2010 was cancelled earlier in the week due to impending snow storm. PAeHI meeting will be rescheduled.

NJ HIT Commission Cancels Feb 11, 2010 meeting; will reschedule

NJ HIT Commission to cancels Thur, Feb 11, 2010 meeting
New Jersey Health IT Commission has cancelled it meeting  scheduled for Thursday, February 11, 2010,
 and will set a time to meet later in February due to weather-related travel issues. Three national summits were going on in Washington, DC the first week in February which initially led to scheduling commission meeting second week of February instead of the usual first Thursday of month. The national meetings focused on HIPAA, Health IT for Government leaders, and Health Information Exchange. More info on those conferences to come.