A consortium of health plans in Minnesota is rolling out a Web-based system that will let providers submit insurance claims electronically to comply with a July 15 legislative deadline. The Minnesota Council of Health Plans tapped Infotech Global Inc. to power the system, called MN E-Connect, which serves as a Web portal that lets providers file medical, hospital, and dental claims.
Despite renewed discussion around healthcare IT investments because of the federal stimulus package, most HIT budgets are still tight and providers are looking to IT vendors for creative solutions to keep projects moving. But a new report from KLAS says those creative solutions are virtually non-existent. The report, Executive Reaction to the Stimulus Package, explores the gap between what providers need and what vendors are offering to deal with a troubled economy.
Stealing medical data has become more attractive to hackers and identity thieves as banks and individuals have become more sophisticated about protecting credit-building information. Patients may feel like they have little control over information, but there are ways to safeguard data. An increased vigilance when handling medical cards and bills is an essential tactic, for example.
The shutdown of a Canadian nuclear reactor that is a crucial supplier of medical scanning isotopes is interrupting care to patients and hindering suppliers. Doctors are worried the Ontario-based plant, run by Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., could be down for a prolonged stretch or may never restart. Either scenario would further snarl a supply line running through Cardinal Health Inc., MDS Inc.'s Nordion unit and privately held Lantheus Medical Imaging Inc., among other companies.
Microsoft continued its push into healthcare through a deal with Merck to gain access to some genetic data-management software. Microsoft plans to incorporate the genetic and genomic data-management software into Microsoft Amalga Life Sciences. Amalga is part of a push by Microsoft, whose other offerings include patient health-records holder HealthVault, to become a bigger player in healthcare.
Though the number of doctors who perform wrist angioplasty remains small in the United States—just 1.3% of the one million angioplasties performed yearly in the United States, according to one study—the number is growing as practitioners tout its benefits: less pain, less bleeding, and shorter hospital stays. But surgeons who prefer to stick with the groin call the wrist procedure a ''gimmick'' that takes more time and can't be used in many critical heart procedures.