Molly Merrill

Electronic healthcare record adoption has increased by 3.2 percent in physician offices since February 2009, according to a new survey.

With 2010 bringing a heightened focus on healthcare compliance, reform efforts and enforcement, providers should be aware of the legal ramifications that surround these issues, says law expert Stephen W. Bernstein.

Officials at Alexandria, Va.-based Surescripts say it is reducing what pharmacies, pharmacy vendors and pharmacy benefit managers pay for e-prescribing.

Health professionals believe that between 50,000 and 200,000 new jobs will be created in health IT by the year 2015, according to a recent survey.

Officials at Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente reported that the healthcare system’s net income for 2009 was $2.1 billion, representing a jump compared to 2008’s net loss of $794 million.

Northern Kentucky University is offering two new certificate programs aimed at unemployed professionals, one of which will focus on equipping individuals with computer skills for the healthcare industry.

About 48 percent of patients in a recent survey said their doctor was using an electronic health record during their most recent visit to their physician.

Physicians at the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine will begin moving into a new $40.5 million medical education building this week. The new building includes a telemedicine training center, which officials say will help prepare their doctors for healthcare in the digital age.

A new program that sends free health information directly to expectant and new moms' mobile phones was launched Thursday at the Health IT Summit for Government Leaders in Washington, D.C.

A gap exists between policymakers' expectations that electronic medical records can improve coordination of patient care and clinicians' real-world experiences with EHRs, according to a study by the Center for Studying Health System Change.