Just before Congress left for recess this week, Congressman Frank Kratovil (MD-1) introduced legislation in the House of Representatives that will streamline the way health centers access and receive Medicaid Health Information Technology (HIT) incentive payments established in the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA). H.R. 6348 will allow health centers to better coordinate and deliver care and help health care delivery in every state. Without the change set out in this bill, each health center and eligible health center provider may need to revise their contracts between health centers and health center providers in order to ensure they can access nearly $1 billion in federal support for the adoption and use of electronic medical records.
A Recap on the Medicaid HIT Incentive Payments
In ARRA, Congress established incentive payments in Medicaid and Medicare to increase providers’ use of HIT and to ease the cost burden associated with acquiring and maintaining an electronic medical record system. The current law requires that State Medicaid Agencies make these payments directly to providers who are eligible to receive them, unless the provider submits a request to the state to reassign their payment amount to another entity. For health centers, this would mean that although the health center organization makes the upfront investment and maintains the costly HIT system for health center providers to use, State Medicaid Agencies would make the incentive payments to health center providers directly. Reassignment of these payments to the health center organization will be an administratively burdensome process and may require that each health center revise their contract with every eligible provider they work with.
H.R. 6348 would remove the requirement that health center providers reassign their incentive payments to their health center and would allow State Medicaid Agencies to work directly with the health centers. This legislative effort, championed by Rep. Kratovil, will promote health centers’ adoption and use of HIT and help to improve patient care across health centers and among providers as in order to improve health centers’ care coordination.
While Members of Congress are home during the recess, be sure to tak to them about the importance of these Medicaid HIT incentive payments and HR 6348. Stay tuned for more information and action alerts in the coming weeks!
For NACHC’s official press release click here. For NACHC’s one pager on this issue, click here.
Just before Congress left for recess this week, Congressman Frank Kratovil (MD-1) introduced legislation in the House of Representatives that will streamline the way health centers access and receive Medicaid Health Information Technology (HIT) incentive payments established in the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA). H.R. 6348 will allow health centers to better coordinate and deliver care and help health care delivery in every state. Without the change set out in this bill, each health center and eligible health center provider would have to undergo an administratively burdensome process and may need to revise their contracts between health centers and health center providers in order to ensure they can access the nearly $1 billion in federal support that may be available for the adoption and use of electronic medical records.
A Recap on the Medicaid HIT Incentive Payments
In ARRA, Congress established incentive payments in Medicaid and Medicare to increase providers’ use of HIT and to ease the cost burden associated with acquiring and maintaining an electronic medical record system. The current law requires that State Medicaid Agencies make these payments directly to providers who are eligible to receive them, unless the provider submits a request to the state to reassign their payment amount to another entity. For health centers, this would mean that although the health center organization makes the upfront investment in and maintains the costly HIT system forthat every health center providers to uses, State Medicaid Agencies will would make the incentive payments to health center providers directly. Reassignment of these payments to the health center organization will be an administratively burdensome process and may require that each health center revise their contract with every eligible provider they work with.
H.R. 6348 would remove the requirement that health center providers reassign their incentive payments to their health center and would allow State Medicaid Agencies to work directly with the health centers directly. This legislative effort, championed by Rep. Kratovil, will promote health centers’ adoption and use of HIT and help to improve patient care across health centers and among other providers as. With the use of HIT, in order to improve health centers’ care coordination is greatly improved, allowing providers to communicate across the health care system about patients’ diagnoses, care and follow-up. This legislative effort, championed by Rep. Kratovil, will promote health centers’ adoption and use of HIT and help to improve patient care across health centers and other providers.
While Members of Congress are home during the recess, be sure to talk to them about the importance of these Medicaid HIT incentive payments and HR 6348. Stay tuned for more information and action alerts in the coming weeks!Tell your Member of Congress to sign on to HR 6348 and join Congressman Kratovil as he works to support health centers and bring health care delivery into the 21st century.
For NACHC’s official press release click here. For NACHC’s one pager on this issue, click here.
Are you planning to address the issue that Physician Assitants are not included in the HIT Incentive Payments, but NPs are? This will lead to many organizations not hiring PA and possibly phasing PAs out of their staffing. HUGE problem!!!!
Of course it’s a good idea to help CHC’s get the hardware and software to support “meaningful use”, but some incentive needs to be provided to the providers who “meaningfully” use it. Otherwise, the CHC’s will have great stuff that’s not used.