The Verizon Foundation gave the Rhode Island Quality Institute a $15,000 grant to implement electronic provider alerts in a program that aims to coordinate care for preterm infants. 

Pressures to meet Meaningful Use (MU) requirements and cut costs are driving growth in revenue cycle services throughout the U.S., according to the recent KLAS report, "Revenue Cycle Services: Which Firms Deliver Big Returns?" ICD-10 preparation and reduced reimbursements also have added to demand for outside revenue cycle assistance to improve cash collections, reduce A/R days and deal with legacy claims.

A new bill would foster innovation in mobile health technology. Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.) introduced H.R. 6626, The Healthcare Innovation and Marketplace Technologies Act, that would introduce marketplace incentives, challenge grants and increased workforce retraining.

While it is widely believed that telehealth strategies can improve patient outcomes by enabling providers’ instant access to specialized clinical knowledge, concerns over telehealth costs remain. An analysis of available data suggested those concerns lack substance, according to research published online Dec. 4 by Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.

The convergence of IT leads to radical innovation and “the most exciting time in medicine,” said Eric Topol, MD, speaking during a webinar hosted by the Health Information Management and Systems Society. This digital revolution with new tools is transforming medicine in virtually every way, he said, a theme carried over from his book, The Creative Destruction of Medicine: How the Digital Revolution Will Create Better Health Care.

A recent post on HealthITBuzz, the Office of the National Coordinator of Health IT's (ONC) blog, discussed how health IT systems fared during Hurricane Sandy. Paper patient records, not surprisingly, were another casualty of the storm but health IT held up well according to the post's author, Brett Coughlin, ONC health information specialist.

Mobile technology will substantially impact patient care delivery according to half of IT professionals responding to the seconnd Annual HIMSS Mobile Technology Survey, sponsored by Qualcomm Life. Another 16 percent reported that mobile technology will dramatically change the future of healthcare delivery.

mHIMSS, the mobile initiative of the Health Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS), has introduced the mHIMSS Roadmap to provide direction related to mobile health (mHealth).