When selecting and planning implementation of an EHR (Electronic Health Records) system, healthcare organizations of all sizes have much to consider – just don't overlook HIPAA 5010 or ICD-10 from the onset.
Although it's been hazy, a picture of how ICD-10 intertwines with EHRs is becoming a bit clearer of late. CSC included ICD-10 in its list of Top 10 Meaningful Use challenges providers face, while more broadly McKinsey Quarterly estimated that ICD-10 is among the regulations demanding payers to rework 90 percent of their IT architectures.
And Nancy Faboozi, senior industry analyst at Frost & Sullivan who authored the recent U.S. Ambulatory EHR Market report said in an InformationWeek article that, in addition to achieving Meaningful Use to earn government reimbursement, one of the reasons for adopting EHRs is that providers have to update old practice management systems anyway to comply HIPAA 5010 and ICD-10.
[Related: A little-known potentially large ICD-10 loophole. See also: Survival Guide to HIPAA 5010, the new medical claims messiah.]
While some folks in the healthcare realm are asking if their EMR or EHR will support ICD-10, others are predicting that ICD-10 could introduce more errors than even ICD-9 creates and possibly impact patient care, quality, and workflow negatively.
The ONC (Office of National Coordinator), meanwhile, is devising best practices for EHR adoption by examining what works best for Beacon Communities and ultimately determining ways to share that information throughout the broader healthcare industry.
It's not clear yet whether ICD-10 will fit into those best practices but it should, if only because it can help make patients better-informed and, thus, care management simpler.
As Mandy Willis, a specialist of ICD-10 SME at Hubbert Systems Consulting, told ICD10Watch in a previous article: “It would stand to reason that any migration path includes ICD-10 and HIPAA 5010 as a foundation to the work that is coming,” in instituting electronic medical records.
Editor's Note: Vote in our current reader poll, please! Which ICD-10 cost is of most concern to you? We'll report the results and what they mean on ICD10Watch.
Tom Sullivan blogs regularly at ICD10Watch.com.
