The Ohio General Assembly has passed legislation to establish the Patient Centered Medical Home Education Pilot Project, under which 40 primary care practices will be designated as training centers for patient-centered medical homes. The Ohio House and Senate unanimously passed the bill, which is expected to be signed by Gov. Ted Strickland.

"While efforts of the federal government, states and stakeholders to implement the HITECH Act are worthy of praise, there are course corrections that must currently be made to occur at both the legislative and regulatory levels," according to a report released by Manatt Health Solutions.

A password-protected laptop computer containing information about 61,027 Cincinnati Childrens Hospital Medical Center patients from multiple states and several foreign countries has been stolen.

The use of fetal and neonatal monitoring and diagnostics is growing in the European Union due to a combination of higher awareness among expectant mothers about the advantages of sophisticated monitoring, as well as the non-invasiveness and greater safety offered by new prenatal diagnostic techniques, according to an analysis from market research firm Frost & Sullivan.

The vast amount of healthcare information now being generated could be the greatest asset available in improving patient care. However, to do the most good, this information must be effectively exchangedand delivered securelyamong more stakeholders than ever before.

Quality Systems, the parent of NextGen Healthcare Information Systems, has reported the positive financial results for its fiscal 2010 fourth quarter and year, which ended March 31.

Ocean Medical Imaging Center (OMIC), developed through a partnership with Lake Forest, Calif.-based InSight Health Services Holdings, has acquired X-Ray Associates in Toms River, N.J., from the Sonix Medical Resources bankruptcy proceeding in New York.

Telemedicine faces its share of hurdles, but CMS is getting ready to lower one of the regulatory stumbling blocks. And none too soon: As we wrote in the cover story of the May issue of CMIO, because physicians are licensed and credentialed by state, it can be difficult for them to practice across state linesas telemedicine requires in many areas.