Hospitals in the United Kingdom don't always take into account the full costs of implementing new EHR systems and should be better prepared if they are to maximize the benefits, according to research published online in the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has released a cybersecurity framework groups can use to create, assess or improve comprehensive cybersecurity programs. 

In the wake of an indictment of a hospital executive for false Meaningful Use attestation, the House Energy and Commerce Committee plans to investigate how the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) awards funds to hospitals that attest to Meaningful Use and what guidelines have been issued to prevent fraud and abuse of the program, the Dallas Morning News' "Watchdog Blog" reports.

The healthcare sector accounted for 43 percent of the 619 breaches the Identity Theft Resource Center recorded in 2013. This is the first time that healthcare industry breaches have surpassed those in the business sector since 2005, according to an ITRC report.

Physicians are unhappy with EHR systems, with many citing high costs and negative impacts on patient care, according to a survey conducted by research firm MPI Group on behalf of Medical Economics.

A federal grand jury has indicted former chief financial officer and administrator Joe White of the now-shuttered Shelby Regional Medical Center in east Texas for collecting $800,000 in EHR incentive payments under false pretenses, according to an article in the Dallas Morning News.

To assist eligible providers with meeting Meaningful Use requirements, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced that it is building a database to help entities determine the readiness of public health agencies and registries to receive electronic data from certified EHRs, according to a Federal Register notice.

The market for electronic health and medical records (EMRs) is set to experience rapid growth over the coming years, with EMR peer group value estimated to climb from approximately $10.6 billion in 2012 to $17 billion by 2017, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 9.8%, according to research and consulting firm GlobalData.