#HIMSS17
Expert insight on the trends that will shape discussions at HIMSS17
February 20, 2017
By Trace Devanny, CEO of TractManager Inc.
HIMSS always seems to be a harbinger of change in the health care industry, and this year proves no different.
The health care industry overall faces massive potential change with the repeal, replacement, or revision of the ACA. Change, especially at this level, is always unsettling, but I think we can do best for our organizations, and eventually for our patients, by concentrating on what we can do and setting aside thoughts of things we simply can’t control, such as legislation.
No matter where we are in the health information industry, there are a few trends that are clear and must be dealt with if we are to succeed. Some things, like the continued rate of mergers and acquisitions of hospitals, and bundled payments for services rather than fee for procedures, are clearly going to be a big part of health care in the future.
Compliance
The CIO of every hospital should have a close working relationship with its chief compliance officer and general counsel, since every contract, every agreement, virtually every email flows through some component of the hospital’s IT system. Of particular risk to an organization is any contract associated with patient care or the referring of patients (including any hospital/physician agreements) for those services, these agreements all need to be managed with expertise and technology.
Bret Bissey, senior vice president of compliance services at our MediTract Division, tells me that million-dollar settlements resulting from some element of fraud or abuse are reported almost weekly. Many of these are focused on inaccurate hospital or physician contracting practices, which have led to accusations of Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS) or Stark Law violations.
Given the need to preserve the Medicare Trust Fund, any changes in the ACA won’t alter the Justice Department’s or OIG’s determination to spot the violators and fine them heavily. You can help save your organization the risk of costly investigations and these millions dollar settlements by working closely with your compliance office to avoid this risk.
Cyber security
Hand in glove with government compliance is the issue of cybersecurity.
This can be as ominous as hackers diving into cloud-based storage of data, or as simple as lost or stolen electronic devices.
HHS reported 106 hacking incidents last year, 20 times more than just six years ago.
On a much simpler level, employees’ electronic devices present an easy avenue for highly confidential information. One Texas hospital was recently fined more than $3 million in HIPAA violations after unencrypted devices were lost at D/FW airport or stolen from employee offices or homes.
Roman Franklin, our MD Buyline analyst in this field suggests that health care organizations create a risk-based decision-making approach, as well as establish more stringent control policies related to provider and employee information access.
A knowledgeable CIO and/or chief security officer (CSO) can have a profound effect on achieving these goals, and I’m certain we’ll see many companies here at HIMSS this week with products to protect your organization.
Contract life cycle management
Contract life cycle management is another area of health care administration where chief information officers find themselves hip-deep in potential opportunities or problems, depending on your perspective.
The average hospital has more than 4,000 contracts for goods and services. A well-developed system to bid, execute, and monitor these services can yield a bonanza of savings and a chance for hospital administration to focus on the true business at hand, healing. Done poorly, it can eat up already thin margins and open us to the risk of non-compliance litigation.
Our MediTract division has developed Process Manager, the only health care-specific contract management solution to control contract work flows. It is your end-to-end contract life cycle management solution, implementing processes and controls, and the aforementioned mitigating compliance risks.
Trace Devanny is a 30-year veteran of the health care information industry. Prior to joining TractManager last year, he served as president of Nuance Communications’ health care business, chairman and CEO of TriZetto Corporation, and president of Cerner Corporation. He started his career with IBM.
HIMSS always seems to be a harbinger of change in the health care industry, and this year proves no different.
The health care industry overall faces massive potential change with the repeal, replacement, or revision of the ACA. Change, especially at this level, is always unsettling, but I think we can do best for our organizations, and eventually for our patients, by concentrating on what we can do and setting aside thoughts of things we simply can’t control, such as legislation.
No matter where we are in the health information industry, there are a few trends that are clear and must be dealt with if we are to succeed. Some things, like the continued rate of mergers and acquisitions of hospitals, and bundled payments for services rather than fee for procedures, are clearly going to be a big part of health care in the future.
Compliance
The CIO of every hospital should have a close working relationship with its chief compliance officer and general counsel, since every contract, every agreement, virtually every email flows through some component of the hospital’s IT system. Of particular risk to an organization is any contract associated with patient care or the referring of patients (including any hospital/physician agreements) for those services, these agreements all need to be managed with expertise and technology.
Bret Bissey, senior vice president of compliance services at our MediTract Division, tells me that million-dollar settlements resulting from some element of fraud or abuse are reported almost weekly. Many of these are focused on inaccurate hospital or physician contracting practices, which have led to accusations of Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS) or Stark Law violations.
Given the need to preserve the Medicare Trust Fund, any changes in the ACA won’t alter the Justice Department’s or OIG’s determination to spot the violators and fine them heavily. You can help save your organization the risk of costly investigations and these millions dollar settlements by working closely with your compliance office to avoid this risk.
Cyber security
Hand in glove with government compliance is the issue of cybersecurity.
This can be as ominous as hackers diving into cloud-based storage of data, or as simple as lost or stolen electronic devices.
HHS reported 106 hacking incidents last year, 20 times more than just six years ago.
On a much simpler level, employees’ electronic devices present an easy avenue for highly confidential information. One Texas hospital was recently fined more than $3 million in HIPAA violations after unencrypted devices were lost at D/FW airport or stolen from employee offices or homes.
Roman Franklin, our MD Buyline analyst in this field suggests that health care organizations create a risk-based decision-making approach, as well as establish more stringent control policies related to provider and employee information access.
A knowledgeable CIO and/or chief security officer (CSO) can have a profound effect on achieving these goals, and I’m certain we’ll see many companies here at HIMSS this week with products to protect your organization.
Contract life cycle management
Contract life cycle management is another area of health care administration where chief information officers find themselves hip-deep in potential opportunities or problems, depending on your perspective.
The average hospital has more than 4,000 contracts for goods and services. A well-developed system to bid, execute, and monitor these services can yield a bonanza of savings and a chance for hospital administration to focus on the true business at hand, healing. Done poorly, it can eat up already thin margins and open us to the risk of non-compliance litigation.
Trace Devanny
Trace Devanny is a 30-year veteran of the health care information industry. Prior to joining TractManager last year, he served as president of Nuance Communications’ health care business, chairman and CEO of TriZetto Corporation, and president of Cerner Corporation. He started his career with IBM.