First Lawsuit Filed Against a Business Associate Under HIPAA / HITECH
The first HIPAA enforcement action against a business associate has been filed by the Minnesota Attorney General's office. The first HIPAA enforcement action against a business associate has been filed…
New Cancer Screening Recommendations Very Controversial
I see five major themes in cancer care advances –new approaches to screening and diagnosis, better understanding of the role of viruses as causative agents, targeted therapies, new technologies and…
Will Accountable Care be the Final Straw for US Economy and Healthcare system?
Essential to the development of an ACO, small or large is Health Information Technology.Key recommendations include: a health IT infrastructure that is flexible to support the changing needs of…
With Health Care Spending Still on the Rise, Payment Models Begin to Change
Earlier this week, Ways and Means Health Subcommittee Chairman Wally Herger (R-CA) held a hearing on delivery system reforms that reward physicians who deliver high quality and efficient care. At…
Unintended Pregnancy: A Biomarker for Disease and Poverty
The U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops proved in its late Friday statement opposing President Obama’s compromise plan on contraceptive services that it cares as little about science as it does…
Physician Burnout: Why it’s not a Fair Fight
Why does having a sense of satisfaction and fulfillment as a modern doctor seem like such a struggle at times? There is an invisible battle going on, day-by-day…
Mobile Governance
The executive summary of the HIMSS Mobile Technology Survey report had a somewhat alarming statistic -- only 38% of respondents noted that they have a mobile technology policy in place that regulates…
Crowdsourcing for Healthcare Innovation
In Robert Berenson, MD and Nicole Cafarella’s article, Is the CMS Innovation Center Innovating Too Fast?, the authors note that, “One of the few
Social Media: Pharma Industry Considers Patient Engagement a Must
The Pharmaceutical industry feels patient engagement is a priority, but lacks presence in the social media world. There’s a better way for Pharma to get their message heard,…
Collaborative Governance
At a combined retreat that I facilitated last month, a Board chair commented on the challenge of collaborative governance and lamented her steep learning curve: “It took me two years just…
