The MedSafe Compliance Corner

In The Know: Stay Informed with Health Care News

This week, In The Know, looks at the following news stories: AMA Lobbies for a Delay in ICD-10 Codes; Social Security Authorizes Electronic Signature for Medical Records; FTC Attempts to Block Omnicare from Buying PharMerica; FDA Approves Cystic Fibrosis Drug; Johns Hopkins to Build “Hotel-Like” Hospital; Breaches of Medical Records Surpasses 19 Million; WHO and Drug Firms Pledge to Eradicate 10 Tropical Diseases; Pediatric ICUs Have More Infections that Adult ICUs.

AMA Lobbies for a Delay in ICD-10 Codes

The American Medical Association has sent a letter to the Speaker of the House, John Boehner, asking for a halt to the implementation of the ICD-10 coding system, saying that physicians are currently spending time and resources implementing electronic health records, and are facing penalties if they do not successfully participate in multiple Medicare programs, including the e-prescribing program, the EHR meaningful use program, and the Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS). According the AMA, it could cost a single medical practice anywhere from $83,290 to more than $2.7 million to make the change. To read the AMA’s letter, click on http://thehill.com/images/stories/blogs/healthwatch/icd10.pdf.

Social Security Authorizes Electronic Signature for Medical Records

Beginning in April, people applying for disability benefits through Social Security will be able to sign and submit the Authorization to Disclose Information form electronically. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) permits the use of electronic signatures, and Social Security is encouraging medical providers to treat the new electronic signature the same as they would a “wet” signature. Social Security requests more than 15 million medical records each year on behalf of people applying for disability benefits. The option of an electronic signature is expected to reduce the application processing time by up to nine days. For more information, click on http://www.ssa.gov/disability/professionals/eAuthorization.htm.

FTC Attempts to Block Omnicare from Buying PharMerica

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has filed a lawsuit to block Omnicare’s hostile takeover of the institutional pharmacy provider PharMerica Corp., saying it would harm competition and could allow Omnicare to raise drug prices for the 1.6 million beneficiaries who reside in skilled nursing facilities that are covered by Medicare Part D plans. Omnicare and PharMerica are the two largest institutional pharmacy companies in the U.S., and the FTC alleges that the combined company would service roughly 57% of the licensed skilled nursing facility beds in the U.S. The next largest long-term care pharmacy makes up 2% of the market. In a news release, the FTC said, “A firm that combines the largest and second-largest long-term care pharmacies in the country would have the unique ability to exert even greater bargaining power to raise the price of drugs to Part D health plans.” To read the FTC’s News Release, click on http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2012/01/omnicare.shtm.

FDA Approves Cystic Fibrosis Drug

The FDA has approved the first drug to target abnormal chloride trafficking in cystic fibrosis, the condition’s underlying cause. Two Phase III trials, in which 135 patients received the drug or placebo, showed improvement by 10.6 percentage points for lung function, and was associated with greater reductions in pulmonary exacerbations and respiratory symptoms, as well as better weight gain in the study. Patients with cystic fibrosis often have difficulty maintaining normal weight and are excessively thin. The drug is produced by Vertex Pharmaceuticals. To read the FDA’s Press Release, click on http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm289633.htm.

Johns Hopkins to Build “Hotel-Like” Hospital

Johns Hopkins has unveiled plans for a new $1.1 billion hospital with a “hotel-like” atmosphere. The 1.6 million-square-foot building will feature 560 private rooms, 33 operating rooms, new adult and children’s emergency rooms, and will include gardens, artwork, sound-proofing, Internet, and food options. It is one of the largest hospital construction projects in the country. The new hospital will replace the East Baltimore campus, constructed in the 1930s and 1950s. Officials say the upgrades are needed to maintain business by attracting patients, doctors, and other personnel.  Edward D. Miller, Dean and Chief Executive of Johns Hopkins Medicine, said, “Our new facilities will enable us to provide that excellent care with greater comfort and privacy for our patients and their families in a state-of-the-art environment.” Patients are scheduled to move to the new facilities in April. To read the article from the Baltimore Sun, click on http://www.baltimoresun.com/health/bs-hs-new-hopkins-hospital-20120126,0,5336130.story.

Breaches of Medical Records Surpasses 19 Million

The federal “wall of shame” that tallies the number of breaches of health care information now is at 385 incidents affecting more than 19 million individuals since September 2009. Sutter Health was recently added to the list of breaches affecting 500 or more individuals. Sutter’s breach occurred when an unencrypted desktop computer was stolen in October. The desktop contained information on 943,000 individuals, and that is the information contained in the government tally, however, in announcing the breach, Sutter Health noted that two databases with information on 4.2 million patients were on the device. Sutter Health faces two class action lawsuits as a result of the breach. To view the Department of Health and Human Services’ list of breaches, click on http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/administrative/breachnotificationrule/breachtool.html.

WHO and Drug Firms Pledge to Eradicate 10 Tropical Diseases

The World Health Organization (WHO) has partnered with health organizations, pharmaceutical companies, governments and private donors in an effort to control or eliminate ten neglected tropical diseases, such as leprosy and sleeping sickness, by 2020. The WHO has estimated that “neglected” (so named because they affect mostly the poorest people in the poorest countries) tropical diseases affect more than a billion people and cost billions of dollars a year in lost productivity. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will donate $340 million over the next five years, and 13 major pharmaceutical companies will deliver an average of 1.4 billion treatments every year over the next decade. Additional support was pledged from governments in the U.S., U.K., United Arab Emirates, as well as from private donors. To read more, click on http://www.who.int/en/.

Pediatric ICUs Have More Infections that Adult ICUs

According to a new investigation from Consumer Reports, pediatric ICUs averaged 1.8 bloodstream infections for every 1,000 days children were on central lines, compared with an estimated national average of 1.5 bloodstream infections in adult ICUs. The reason is thought to be because clinicians tend to leave central lines in longer for children than they do for adult patients and access the lines more frequently. Children also have less-developed immune systems, especially for children in intensive care. To read the Consumer Reports article, click on http://news.consumerreports.org/health/2012/01/many-pediatric-icus-have-high-infection-rates.html.