Content about Blog: Emdeon

One major theme resonating across the show floor at HIMSS13 was the importance of interoperability within healthcare ecosystems. Emdeon's Lathe Bigler discusses how interoperability in the pharmacy space has been centered on advances in e-prescribing and clinical messaging.

Health care is evolving. As obvious of a statement as that is, it doesn’t change the fact that it is very real. Throughout last year, there was intense discussion on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and what impact the outcome of the presidential election might have on its future. Now that the Supreme Court has ruled and elections are settled, healthcare companies and providers across the country are implementing strategies to meet ACA requirements.

Each year, we say goodbye to the current year and welcome in the New Year full of hope and aspirations for a successful year ahead. Customers turn out in droves for “New Year, New You” specials and when they reach the register, the retail pharmacy world knows the scenario quite well.

There is no doubt about it. Pharmacy audits can be time consuming and laborious for all parties involved. And as both government and commercial money gets tighter and tighter, all of health care is searching for the most effective means to manage the financial challenges associated with doing business. In addition to the clinical aspects, audits are used to identify genuinely fraudulent or erroneously paid healthcare claims. Nevertheless, a survey released in September 2012 by the National Community Pharmacists Association found that nearly 87% of those surveyed stated that reimbursement and auditing practices are “significantly” or “very significantly” affecting their ability to provide patient care and remain in business.

Healthcare providers in today’s environment are committed to promoting patient safety while providing access to the most reliable and innovative treatments. Medication reconciliation, which is defined by The Joint Commission as “the process of comparing a patient’s medication orders to all of the medications that the patient has been taking,” is designed to prevent drug-related errors — including adverse interactions, overdoses or allergic reactions — and can assist healthcare providers, especially during care transitions when patients are most likely to receive new medications or alternative doses.

E-prescribing owes a debt of gratitude to meaningful use. Without the Office of the National Coordinator’s inclusion of the capability as a core measure, enabling physician technologies may not have taken off with such vigor. But where MU’s e-prescribing requirements — such as two-way transmissions, complete active medication lists and formulary information — leave off, real innovation — characterized by real-time transactions, automated requests and responses, and Intelligent Routing like Emdeon provides — begins with many valuable benefits for providers, pharmacies and patients.

A few weeks ago, we joined some 37,000 of our closest friends for the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) annual conference. HIMSS is a cause-based, not-for-profit organization focused on providing global leadership for the optimal use of information technology (IT) and management systems for the betterment of health care.